As Is
by Calesvol
Summary: In times of desperation, we turn to those we love. And yet, what can Abel do when the one he loves turns against him? In a story of love and betrayal, of conflict and determination, can Abel find the strength to save the world, his beloved, and himself? AU, Abel/Esther
1. The Crusnik's Shadow

As Is

_The Crusnik's Shadow_

(Warnings: M for violence and blood, Abel being himself, a mission, AU, gorn, some sexual themes)

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><p>The chilly expanse of the early morning sky was just barely being broken by the misty-eyed sun swathed in clouds, the night barely being pushed forth by the impending dawn. Stars still clutched to their momentary holds in the Vatican sky, the moon unperturbed by the restless morning's coming. Faint streaks of light peeked over the horizon to edge uncertainly into the sky, coloring it with ripening stripes of sunflower gold and teal that began to blend with the eternal and ancient night.<p>

Father Abel Nightroad watched that dawn with worry in his striking winter-blue eyes, ever showing forth that meager yet friendly facade nearly everyone knew him for. He was a goofy, gentle, clumsy, and perverted man whose lips quivered at the slightest worry to all who came to know him, but to certain ones, he was a monster of unbelievable power that he shared with only a few others.

He stood in the darkened, sheltered confines of the Lady Caterina's office, the lady herself studying him with fierce eyes that humbled many an egotistic man in her day. Her sumptuous blonde hair spilled around her in large ringlets that cascaded over her shoulders and down her back. She wasn't dressed in her usual, pompous red attire. Instead, she wore a simple, long white dress and wore no make-up, which barely detracted from her becoming looks.

"You're reaching that age, Abel. You can't keep putting it off," a voice like velvet spoke, intruding in through his quiet reflection of the night sky. "You know well enough why I called you here."

Abel grimaced for only a moment before pulling his mantle around him a bit tighter as if cold, when in actuality he was feeling very insecure.

"She'll never agree to it, Caterina," Abel responded hopelessly, bowing his head and pressing his forehead to the cool glass.

Caterina sighed, and closed in on the distraught priest. She stood by, but never made any motion to reassure him. "You'll be reaching your Millennium shortly, Abel. As you've come to make me understand, if you don't find a human bride for whom you have strong feelings for, then your life will be ended, am I correct?"

Abel bowed his head and turned slightly away, his voice taking a deadly low. "_We must persist, else we be wiped off the face of the Earth_."

The Cardinal barely batted an eye. "You Crusnik must mate with a human, produce an heir, at the cost of their humanity. If she agrees, she'll become something inhuman."

Abel nodded once.

"This is outside of Vatican jurisdiction. I'm afraid that there is nothing that I can do to help you," she said finally, folding her arms beneath her ample bosom. "That aside, you and the Lady Esther will report back here at eight after she performs the morning service. I will brief you both after you escort her here, is that understood?"

His shoulders seemed to give out and he nodded tiredly, beginning his sullen walk to leave. He was suddenly stopped by Caterina, his eyes wide at her sudden gesture.

"Abel...do your best. Your continued support is desperately needed." Her eyes lowered slightly, and she said off to the side, "And good luck with her."

The man sighed off his troubles and smiled the same goofy, awkward smile she knew him best by.

"You got it!"

* * *

><p>"I know that we have to go to the Kingdom of Hispania of all places, but why dressed like this?" Esther cried out in protest, now clad in a short black mini skirt and almost threadbare bikini top as well as high-heeled, above-the-knee boots.<p>

Caterina sighed as the young girl of seventeen darted back behind the changing screen in the older woman's office, motioning to snatch back her usual habit that she felt much more at home in.

"Aw, don't feel ashamed, Esther. You look great in it!" Abel praised, wiping away a metaphorical nosebleed and trail of drool from his mind. He watched the bob of her endowments with lust, his face heating to a crimson, as she flung off the sampling of what she was to wear in Hispania for their mission. He couldn't wait until they arrived.

"It's bad enough that I have to go with him to a place like that," she groused, reappearing from behind the screen in a mid-thigh high, plain travel dress that she would wear for the journey there.

Caterina folded her arms. "You're too famous as the Lady-Saint to dress as you normally do. Vatican nuns are very distinguishable, and your features are very recognizable. You'd be in trouble if you didn't make an effort to blend in."

Esther sighed, boring her eyes through the suitcase filled with scandalous garb she'd have to wear once they reached Hispania. Although it was a predominantly religious nation, in the modern age they'd succumbed to the wishes of the youth, who were very promiscuous at that, and now the entire kingdom of Hispania was a sun-kissed, scantily clad paradise.

Perfect for men like Abel.

"Yes, it is regrettable that Spain has come to that... But, they are valuable allies to the Vatican and very hospitable to clergymen and women. Don't be surprised if people try to invite you into their homes. They are especially hospitable towards black coats of the Vatican," Caterina said, glaring reproachfully towards Abel who just smiled his trademark, sheepish smile.

"Sounds like paradise~" Abel sighed, a dreamy look alighting on his face. No doubt, he was probably daydreaming about some mega-busty native sauntering up to him and asking him to stay the night.

The thought made a chill shiver down Esther's spine in disgust.

"Alright, you two. I have a few details to finalize with the pope. Wait here until I can brief you on your mission," Caterina ordered, the flap of her robes whipping about her in a momentary bloom of crimson as she breezed from the room with a quiet closing of the double doors.

Esther held up the silence, unable to think of what to say until Abel broke it.

"It's good to see you again, Esther. It seems you've been caught up in your duties, huh? It makes me a little sad that I can't see you as much as I used to," Abel said, smiling warmly as he came to her side. She sidestepped away a little, averting his eyes.

"Yeah... Um, has your illness gotten any better?" she said, changing to subject. Esther thought back to when they'd rescued Ion and were escaping from Radu and Father Petros when he'd been mostly belligerent towards them. The tank, the chaos from their power...she'd never been so scared in her life. Those glowing crimson orbs, talon-like claws, and his otherworldly features that accented his cruel fangs and blackened lips, crowned by a high gathering of his hair like a lance...those blackened wings she thought she saw on their first meeting. No matter how much she tried to hide it, that vision still haunted her. But something scared her even more:

The realization of her growing feelings for him.

Abel's happy expression dropped for a moment, but then he faked his way back to it. "Oh, much better, thank you! It's not as bad as it was before."

_Lies. You know that it's gotten worse and why!_ Those within him spat condescendingly.

Abel shook his head briefly, studying his reticent friend.

"It's been over a month since Sherah died..." Esther said quietly, her voice dropping in her sadness.

Abel instantly became concerned, a hand instinctively reaching out, meaning to soothingly pat her head, but it sharply retracted as the door slammed open.

"Esther, Abel, prepare to be briefed," Caterina ordered, a rush of her robes flapping slightly as she hurried to her desk, sitting properly into the high wing back chair. She brought her hands together and rested her chin on them, piercing them both with sharp, intelligent blue eyes.

Esther and Abel seemed to completely forget their previous tension and stood to attention.

"In the city of Madrid, Spain, many orphanages and religious, Catholic orders has been systematically attacked and over two thousand have been quietly murdered. However, disturbing trends have arisen as a result. Every body has been found headless and disemboweled as well as dismembered. Within the sewers, heads with missing eyes have also been found. On the necks, fang markings have been discovered...exactly like those of a Methuselah."

Esther immediately started, her eyes filled with concern. "Are you absolutely sure?"

Caterina shook her head. "I can't say, but what we know for certain is that a criminal syndicate has been responsible for this, and they primarily deal with the black market in human organ dealings. Usually, the dismembered corpses found not only are missing their limbs, but they are completely disemboweled of every salvageable organ, as well as drained of blood. We've been in partnership with Methuselah from the Empire, albeit on very shaky grounds, and they agree that the possibility of criminal Methuselah collaborating with a human criminal syndicate isn't at all impossible. Rest assured, Esther. We will not have these criminals run amok and mock the Vatican nor tarnish the reputation of the Empire so easily."

She stood and strode to the window, basking in the rays that illuminated her blonde hair into fiery strands of luxuriant gold. "As a matter of fact, don't be surprised if you run into Methuselah who may wish to obtain information as to assist in solving this. Please don't do it casually. The Empress assured me that Methuselah investigating in Madrid will be in possession of her personal signet, which I'm sure you both are familiar with."

Esther breathed a sigh of relief while Abel smiled pleasantly.

Her eyes then quickly became troubled. "Children become victims, too?"

Caterina shook her head. "Quite the opposite. We believe that the children taken are being transformed into Methuselah and made to serve the ones responsible. A witness reported that, at night, these children will often specifically target Catholics and lure them to places of seclusion to be spirited away. However, clergymen and women, as I specified earlier, are not exempt from this predation."

"Child Methuselah... Turning a child is a crime within the Empire, if I remember correctly. It seems that the ones we may be dealing with probably won't be loyal to the Empire, that's certain," Esther ruminated, a finger delicately holding her chin in thought.

"Oh my, well... It seems that I'll have to borrow some more silver bullets from Father Tres..." The loud grumble of Abel's stomach filled the contemplative silence of the room, irking the young redhead. He swallowed nervously, "I don't suppose that I can't go fetch some lunch before we leave?" He tapped his fingers together apprehensively.

Esther smacked Abel's head in irritation. "You're always hungry. Didn't you eat a few hours ago?" she demanded in exasperation.

"Only a few portions of food as a snack..." Abel replied meekly, shying away from her hand poised to smack him again.

"It's quite alright, Esther. We'll be sure to...adequately fund you for this mission. Pope Alessandro is especially concerned and wants this resolved before there is more bloodshed." A small, fleeting smile fetched Caterina's features and she folded her arms.

Esther huffed angrily, before sighing in exasperation. "Come on, Father. I want to get going before you do anything else stupid."

She curtsied to Caterina. "Thank you, Lady Caterina. I hope we return successful," she bid the older woman in farewell. Caterina smiled affectionately at the young nun's gesture.

"I hope you have a safe journey, both of you. Remember to keep the fact of our collaboration with the Empire a secret. The pope and I support it, but many more within the Vatican are dead set against such a venture. Keep everything confidential," Caterina warned with special emphasis.

* * *

><p>Shortly after, Abel and Esther left the grandeur of Caterina's office and made a beeline for the cafeteria, perhaps Abel's favorite place within the Vatican.<p>

"I have unlimited credits on my account, so take what you want, Father," Esther said, glad to be away from Lady Caterina. Abel wasn't exactly a stickler for formality, which made Esther wary since she was new to the Vatican compared to most. His embarrassing behavior was always a hindrance and she liked to be proper when the time called for it. No matter how familiar he was with the Lady Caterina, she wouldn't suffer any excuse of his to be lax or improper.

Abel took her hands, his eyes filled with twinkling stars. "Thank you so much, Esther!" he praised in a cracking voice at the overwhelming opportunity before him. Esther sighed and smiled affectionately, handing him her card which he immediately took off with without a second thought.

In all actuality, she found his demeanor to be incredibly relaxing and comfortable. Maybe he wasn't the most serious of men, compared to the other stalwart and somber men within the Vatican, but he was the only one she felt at ease around. His strength was incomparable and his gentle, clumsy, absent-minded personality made her feel at ease where everyone else demanded perfection and seriousness. Sure, he was a pervert, but he was so in a way that was kind of childish... And she adored his eyes that enraptured her, his inviting smiles...

Esther banged her head reproachfully with a fist, mouth deepening into a frown. "That idiot is JUST A FRIEND. He's annoying, a block-head, and way too dense. I'm not attracted to him AT ALL," Esther mumbled like a mantra beneath her breath.

In the great, elegant expanse of the cafeteria, everything was a seamless blend of past and present, with technology tucked away and luxurious appointments being a boastful undertone to the Vatican's supreme wealth. Multitudes of marble columns with veins of black, silver, and gold placed themselves in a cathedral ring where the many tables and chairs were delegated. The high, domed ceiling with beautiful frescoes was in the center of the band of columns. A recessed chandelier of a magnificent, impossible size illuminated the space with individual flames of beaded crystals that were much larger then they let on. The floors were glazed tiles where veins of water glittered as they wore paths beneath a layer of glass, which Esther always found to be remarkably beautiful. Discreet areas along the marble walls dispensed food according to individual order, and Abel seemed to be delighted in being able to order all that he wanted without having to be mindful of the limited credits on his own card.

Being friends with the Lady-Saint was beneficial in more ways than one.

"Your statements are all false, Sister Esther Blanchett. .58 seconds ago, you claimed not to be attracted to Father Abel Nightroad, but my auditory sensors indicate that the pitch in your voice strongly conveys denial and self-reassurance for various truths that you refuse to acknowledge. Body language is also very stiff and controlled, suggesting your struggle to keep your body from subtly expressing attraction towards him. Your pupils dilate when before him—"

"—I know. But, it's nothing, really. Don't you have silver bullets to lend to him?"

"Sister Esther Blanchett, bullets cannot be lent, for they become expended at first use. I came to announce that your train to Madrid has been canceled and you will be leaving by aircraft in 1400 hours and that all necessary articles have been loaded on board it," his dull monotone announced as he stared with ever disinterest ahead.

Esther placed a hand on Tres's arm. "Thank you. We'll see you as soon as we get back."

"Negative. The probability of my seeing you immediately upon your return is 1 in 1 thousand..."

He was cut short by Esther being distracted by Abel's childishly loud summons.

"Esther! I'm over here!" Abel called with exuberance is his dancing, steel-blue eyes, flailing an arm in the air in the semblance of a wave. The girl in question bit back a smile as she waved the despondent Tres a quick good-bye and walked over to the table Abel had found.

The table, of a medium size, was cleaved in half by a dizzying assortment of food that could've fed a starving village for a week.

"Ah, where should I start—I truly owe you Esther!—My, those pastries look sumptuous, but so do the eclairs...The steak looks so tender, and those biscuits divine..."

Esther sat down tiredly, gazing off into the distance. For several minutes she felt the unwanted prick of tears in her eyes, and by the time he had a quarter of his food left, he finally noticed her troubled state.

Abel burped into a hand finally, as he stacked the most recent dish in a growing tower of plates, sighing contentedly before taking Esther's troubled state into consideration.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he knelt before her, Esther shocked at his sudden intrusion into her mournful reminiscence into the past, tearing her from her happy memories with Deitritch and Bishop Laura, and from the brief joy she'd felt with Sherah.

Esther tried without avail to harden away her obvious sadness, but those pleading eyes of his captured her instantly, causing her to blush insanely. He mistook it for impending tears, so he took her into his arms gently

She stiffened at the gesture, and resisted caving into his kindness. And yet, no matter how much she fought against it, his warm scent drifted through her and she finally relaxed, secretly loving the sensation of his soft yet toned body enveloping her in a cocoon of warmth and security.

Feeling incredibly stupid at her sudden vulnerability, Esther pulled away slightly, indicating her desire to be released, which he did...with what she hoped was extreme reluctance.

Abel released her only slightly, loosening his tender hold. "Can you tell me what's wrong?" he asked again, his gentle voice tearing the rest of her stubbornness asunder. She felt his thumbs rub her shoulders, which caused her to shiver involuntarily.

"Um...I've been feeling kinda crummy...might be a cold," Esther meekly fibbed, hoping that her heated face might be good evidence of that. She sniffed for emphasis, and made her voice as hoarse as possible.

"Ah, let's make sure that your breathing is good." Without warning, Abel pressed his ear smack dab in the middle of her bosom to her sternum, and her face heated in indignation as he obviously delighted in the feeling of her extremely soft breasts, unable to keep his pleasure hidden.

Esther was too dumbfounded to speak, and much too embarrassed to shove him away like any woman should have.

A minute later, many would report a ruckus involving a priest slapped silly and a young woman sprinting from the cafeteria in heated embarrassment.

Of course, said priest was reported not to have shot after said girl until he polished off the rest of his food in five minutes flat, said witness feeling too sick to their stomach and losing their appetite for several hours afterwords due to aforementioned pig-out.

* * *

><p>A beautiful, fiery redhead stalked ahead at one of the Vatican's many landing bays, a protesting priest in tow.<p>

"How many times must I say I'm sorry, Esther? I'm truly concerned for your health, you see! I just wanted to make sure that you were alright!" Abel cried in languishing protest as Esther stomped on ahead, trying and failing to out-pace the much taller man.

"I suddenly got better," Esther growled lowly, lips pursed angrily.

"Ah, Lady Esther! We are pleased to have you here! We hope that you enjoy your flight aboard the Celsius this evening!" a page called out to Esther and Abel approached. Esther's anger instantly melted into the usual sweet facade the lady-saint was renowned for.

"Thank you so much! May the Lord bless you for your selfless service," Esther said in a voice like the blessings of song-birds. Abel smiled warmly, for even he was enchanted by the young girl's charming voice when she wasn't angry or irritated...mostly at him.

"It should be a quick flight, my Lady. By the time you fall asleep and awake, you'll be in the beautiful Madrid," the blond page said dreamily, receiving a kind smile from Esther.

"I'm sure it will be, won't it, Father?" Esther turned to look over her shoulder, beaming him an absolutely radiant smile and gazing at him with those adorably large eyes.

His cheeks heated and he laughed once or twice, saying, "Why yes, yes it will!" with incontestable zeal in his voice.

Esther gave him a brief, dubious expression before putting on her practiced airs before the boy once she turned back towards the page.

"Please come, my Lady, Father," the boy motioned towards a gangway that would board on to a great, streamlined chrome airship that was painfully modern. Inside, however, struck them dumb.

A narrow passage with graceful, even lines of warm red chestnut lined every angle of faux wood, resembling the interior of a car that would've belonged within a locomotive from the 1800's or so. There were dozens of cabins where people sat on two parallel benches and their luggage was packed on wire racks above their heads. The walls were lined with flowery red wallpaper, a commodity in their modern times, and the benches were extremely plush, velveteen seats that looked enticing to sit on. The floors were plush carpets and charming scones hung in pairs inside each of the beautiful cabins, fixtures of lights caged by mellow, frosted glass set throughout the aisle and cabins. As the boyish page led them down the aisle, she could see that the curtains secured on each window opposite the door were drawn down in some, with blinds pulled down the door. Esther took note of that for when she and Abel would discuss the details of their mission.

"Why are some of the windows displaying different scenes?" Esther asked, one piquing her interest as two children babbled soundlessly from the standard sound-proof cabin, the scenery of a grassy farmscape passing by at a lazy speed despite their motionless state.

"You have the option of selecting from a nearly unlimited collection of scenery, since this craft possesses no windows. Your journey could even be underwater. With every scene comes an optional 'senses stimuli' where you could feel the breeze and smell freshly cut grass, such as with theirs," the page gestured to the cabin they were passing. "All imagery is made to be as dimensional and lifelike as current technology allows."

"Could you make it an endless journey through the preparation of every food item known to man? Can you smell the sweetness of fudge as it's being rolled taut by a confectioner? Can you feel the heat of an oven as a lamb chop is being roasted?" Abel jumped in, nearly mowing down Esther in order to ascertain his desire to the boy page.

The page was slightly taken aback by the grown man's immature exuberance, Abel's eyes glittering hopefully, practically salivating at the thought.

The boy swallowed uneasily. "Yes..." he affirmed, pressed against a wall like a frightened rabbit.

Esther pushed him back. "I apologize for my partner's behavior. He's still recovering from...major surgery and the morphine still is making him a little loopy," she explained, laughing awkwardly.

Abel looked hurt and indignant. "I never went through such a thing, Sister Esther!" he complained, looking like a kicked puppy. Who wouldn't be after his partner used such a ridiculous excuse to justify perfectly normal behavior?

"Here's your cabin—have a wonderful stay—good-bye!" the boy squeaked in a terrified rush, ushering them—corralling, really—into their cabin, cabin 13. Esther couldn't help but gulp at such an odious number.

The boy bowed hastily, and nearly slammed the door shut, loosening the curtains and the blinds as both fluttered down to give them absolute privacy.

Esther sat on the seat, curling her knees to her chest and adjusting a glowing panel so that the large window sifted through many scenes. She settled upon an expansive field of flowers, the millions of cheerful blooms accented by a slowly setting sun that filtered through each tongues of color like fiery flames, setting a line of distant trees alight with ravishing emeralds and jade stones. The sky above was streaked by plumes of clouds colored by oranges or reds, or calmed by mellow violets and faint blues. The sound of a rickety horse cart drawn by a placid animal sounded in the ambiance, and the thick, summery musk of life filled her mind with ease, the temperature rising in the room slightly and warm breezes caressing her cheeks.

She smiled to herself, eyes half-lidded in relaxation. Until, a very whiny partner actualized her troubles all over again.

Abel rounded his eyes wide and innocent, staring at Esther as cutely as possible, making her noticeably uncomfortable at his inexorably cute display. He pouted, and Esther could swear that the rising temperature wasn't because of the senses stimuli.

"Estheeeer~!" he begged in a whiny stream, his eyes seeming to heighten their intensity, boring through her head.

The girl in question responded by grabbing a pack of peanuts that fed from the arm rest, throwing it at his head where it smacked off his cheek rather loudly, eyes still stubbornly affixed to the beautiful scenery it practically floated by.

"Esther, please~!" Abel whined louder, pouting even more.

_Smack!_ Right off the forehead.

He flinched, but continued his whiny appeal.

Soon, after dispensing nearly every packet at her disposal, Abel had a growing pile of peanuts that he stashed off to the side. Esther fixed only her eyes on him, remaining in the same position.

"I forgot to mention that air travel makes me rather ill to my stomach," Abel admitted sheepishly, smiling the way he said it.

Esther buried her face between her knees. "Why I try, I don't even..." she mumbled to herself.

Suddenly, the plane slanted, angled against her of course, and Abel became displaced, veering towards her at rapid speed.

"Ooh, my stomach," Abel moaned. Realizing where he was, he drowsily added, "Sooooft..." from between her boobs.

Esther gasped and shoved him away, where the pale-looking priest collided against the wall, sinking to his seat in defeat as the plane evened out.

_Mega-annoyed-teenager-ready-to-lecture-you-to-hell mode, activate!_

"Father! If you hadn't eaten so much, you wouldn't feel as sick as you do now! It's your own fault, and now I'm the one who has to take the brunt of _your_ poor choices!" Esther scolded, in complete and utter disbelief at his level of unprofessional behavior. "It seems like you'd be more suited to chasing skirts than to represent the _Vatican_, what with your endless history of idiocy and utter lack of common sense! If it weren't for the Crusnik, you'd be totally-" She guiltily caught herself, averting her eyes in shame as Abel's extremely hurt expression, his eyes shining with threatening tears, broke down her irritation greatly, reducing her to guilt. She swallowed down the lump in her throat, and hurriedly sat down.

Huffing irately, she pulled out a slim, see-through, glowing keyboard where she hastily punched in an order for seltzer, ginger ale, and a bottle of wine that she hoped he would drink himself to sleep with. It was moments like these she was grateful that she'd been given some training on how to use computers.

A practically invisible chute delivered the drinks, which she set next to Abel, and then began to avoid him again. She resumed staring out the window, listening to the faint sounds of nature wafting peacefully through her mind, trying to drown out the sound of him guzzling down all of his drinks to the last drop.

Her eyes darted to him, where he stiffly lay on his side, his back to her. He seemed to be feigning sleep, but she could tell by his depressed aura that he'd been very emotionally wounded by her unnecessarily callous comment. He looked extremely uncomfortable, cramped in a tight fetal position due to his wiry frame and gangly limbs.

"Um, Father?" Esther ventured uncertainly. Abel stiffened at the sound of her approach, and walled his shoulders up a little higher.

Sighing, she decided on an approach that would _probably_maybe work on him.

She let her small hands perch on his shoulder, pressing her endowments into his back, knelt down. She shivered at such a low form of persuasion, but kind words and suggestive gestures seemed to work well in convincing him to do something.

"I'm really sorry about what I said. It was wrong of me, and none of it is true... Well, may—um, I just wanted to let you know that you've protected me so often, that if I had to count how many times that you've saved me and helped me, I'd have to use the fingers and toes of everyone on board," she giggled slightly at that ridiculous thought, but it seemed to have its effect on Abel. He gingerly peeked at her, which seemed to be a sign for her to say more.

"You've really helped me and so many other people for so long now...We're all in debt to you...I, especially, owe you my life too many times over..." Abel, while his eyes were still saddened by her earlier words, turned around and smiled.

"We all do things that we regret, Esther. It makes me glad that you worked up the courage to apologist. It's very reassuring that there is someone as kind as you at my side." His smile made her blush warmly, and avoid him out of shyness.

He patted her head, and she found herself saying," Um, is there anything that I can do for you?"

Abel sat up, and Esther moved away to her bench, waiting as the older man thought of something. "...Can you lend me your lap?" His eyes were on the ground, but his smile was adorably hopeful.

He glanced up and she shyly nodded once, so he rose and came to her seat and timidly sank down besides her, smiling reassuringly. He twisted away from her, bringing his legs to the seat and lowered his back to it, his neck and head finally descending towards her lap. He stiffened as he subtly positioned it in a nice spot, then relaxing all at once with a sigh. Esther stiffened at the contact, but forced herself to calm down. Luckily, the seat was wide enough for her to lean back, so that she wasn't too uncomfortable supporting Abel.

She sat up a little, gazing down at the much older man with a shyness that betrayed her earlier defensive and prickly attitude. Noticing that his hands were resting on his stomach, she shyly asked, "Um, feeling a little better?"

"Why yes, Esther. Although, I can't say that I regret eating all of that food. I'm not sure when I'll get to feast like that again, so I might as well take pleasure in what the Lord provides~" he purred, patting his stomach satisfyingly.

Esther twitched slightly in disgust, which made Abel go into puppy-mode all over again. "What, you don't like food? You eat so little, Esther, I'm surprised that you have the energy that you do," Abel tsked, shaking his head. His long hair tickled her lap as he did, eliciting an unwanted giggle from the young girl.

"Ah, you see? You're so adorable when you're happy, Esther. You should smile much more often. I love it when you do~" Abel said, a brief grin splitting his face.

"S-Shut up!" Esther cried in protest, making Abel only chuckle quietly to himself. Tongue-in-cheek, she softly ordered, "Close your eyes."

Abel unhesitatingly did so, letting his face relax, looking as peaceful as one who had attained enlightenment.

With deliberate slowness, Esther began to massage along Abel's strong jaw, the man sighing as she did. From there, she moved up his face, around his nose, mouth, his rosy lips, over the lids of his eyes, underneath to brush against long and soft lashes of silver. Her hands guiltily relished in brushing over his skin, feeling the contours of his face and the beautiful smoothness of his skin. Once she passed over his forehead, she moved back to his ears, where it seemed to be stimulating for him, each movement bringing a tensing and relaxing of his muscles. A few times his breath hitched, and she could feel his pulse racing along his neck. She watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed thickly.

Soon, her face became a livid red, her heart pounding into her throat as she worked through his hair, loving the sensation of it trailing through her fingers.

"Oh my, this is rather lovely," Abel sighed, smiling.

The summer scenery began to fall into night, and the sounds of the cart ceased. Twilight overtook the horizon completely, and Esther realized that they'd been on the aircraft for several hours.

She began to doze, and soon her head fell against the cool pane of glass, it cooled to simulate the coolness of a summer night.

The young nun could swear that someone was taking her into their arms, and dreamed that Dietrich was cradling her like when she was young all those many years ago...

* * *

><p>Something rose and fell as Esther pulled herself from a deep sleep, her nose filling with the heated scent of a person and the feeling of a cheek resting atop her head. Slowly coming to her senses, she realized that Abel's cassock was wrapped around them both, her head clearly resting on his chest with only her eyes peeking out. Her abdomen was coiled around by his arms, causing her to heat up at the sensation of a hand resting loosely on her hips, the other by her waist.<p>

Her arms overlapped Abel's, and she felt the cascades of his long bangs tickling her face and his soft snores in her ears.

What in all the nine levels of hell was she doing cuddled so closely to him?

Suddenly, a thunderously loud crash shook the cabin, and the simulated morning light from the screen fizzled off. Esther yelped as she felt gravity loosen its hold on them, rolling off the seat in her panic. Abel was rudely awakened, and found himself toppling over on Esther.

Their gazes shot up with a start as the plane leveled itself and the window screen flickered back on, the captain's face filling its entirety, Esther having a rather picturesque view of the pilot's inverted face. However, both were still too hushed with concern to care about their awkward predicament.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we seem to be experiencing some...turbulence. Please stand by while we...AGGGGhhhHHH—!"

"Father, we should really see what's wrong," Esther said in concern. Abel nodded stiffly, his face becoming leveled and serious. He rose, reaching into a holster for his trademark percussion revolver. He silently offered his hand, which Esther took to be pulled suddenly forward, smack-dab into his chest.

He held her there for a moment, looking like the stern guardian she had become very used to seeing. "Stay close to me, understand?" he whispered, his warm breath ghosting by her ear. She felt for her own shotgun, which she held in trembling hands shaking from the jack up of adrenaline.

To his annoyance, the doors had been locked, perhaps so that panic could be avoided. He released Esther and aimed the muzzle to the lock, shooting dead on and disengaging its hold on them. He wrenched the door open, gesturing for Esther to take his back.

A piercing howl tore through her senses and Esther writhed to the ground, screaming in agony. Abel crouched down and sheltered her, guarding her with a predatory keen taking to his eyes, sweeping his head back and forth, reacting to the slightest disturbance through the screams.

The sealed entrance to the cockpit became forcefully indented with virulent claws, and Abel rose, the screams ceasing. Esther followed suit shakily, trembling violently, those cries having made fear spike to her core.

"W-What was that?" her voice trembled, cowering behind Abel.

"We'll find out soon enough," Abel replied with a guttural low, eyes transfixed ahead. He canted his head slightly like a predator considering its prey, then bolting away with inhuman speed to the entrance, kicking open the door and finding himself grappling with a mass of clawed limbs and wild, extremely long tresses of disheveled black hair.

Esther careened towards Abel, the man gritting his teeth as he flipped the beast on its back, struggling for his gun. She quickly fired a round at its limbs, the thing writhing away and ghosting around her and towards the luggage hold of the plane. Esther ran towards Abel, trying to help him up, but the man brusquely refused her efforts.

"Take control of this plane and try to safely land it NOW!" he ordered with a terrifying strength in his voice, he shoving her towards the cockpit rather violently.

She flinched as pain greeted her mind, and she winced as she tried to stand, watching as the entrance to the luggage area was slammed shut, now unable to witness the action.

Struggling to stand, Esther soon became very well aware of the airship's swift ascent to the ground. Airships in this time were built to crash land much more safely then the models of a thousand years ago, but there was still risk in an unmanned craft.

Panicking, Esther made way into the cockpit, aghast at what she saw.

The mangled bodies of the pilots were ripped to shreds, intestines hanging from levers, stretches of arteries and veins hung in macabre decor, and limbs torn randomly throughout the area. Blood was painted everywhere, splattered over controls, and stained the seats. Limbs were in corners, and ligaments stretched every which way.

Esther hurled into a corner where soulless eyes stared at her, heaving up what little food was in her stomach. Wiping her lips, she felt too weak to stand, but resolved herself. Now chalky white, her dull and weakened eyes affixed themselves to the window pane where a trembling hand reached out to wipe away the blood and heavy stench of iron.

The sky was an endless blue expanse, but soon, the puffy layers of clouds gave way to land. Her trembling hands graced over the controls, she having learned to fly many kinds of aerial craft as a part of her training for AX. Levers were pulled and switches were flung up or down, knobs turned and buttons pressed. She unsteadily took the controls pelted with with blood and guts, surveying the land and finding a lonely stretch of abandoned farmland for her to ease the airship upon. The hover treks became engaged, the she pulled the nose of the airship up, easing the craft upon the land, rear to nose. Sliding to a halt, the aircraft slid across rough terrain, rocks and debris excruciatingly screeching against the sides, to a grinding stop.

"Oh my God!" Esther cried with relief, tears pouring from her eyes.

"Abel!" she suddenly remembered, tearing from the bloodied seat and blazing down the hall, mashing a random control to unlock the doors, allowing for the exits to become unlocked and for the passengers to make their escape. As she entered the luggage area, the cries of badly shaken children and mothers lapsing into silence as the door swept shut.

Suddenly, the same terrifying screech as before sounded, sending Esther to the ground in intense agony. She felt hot breaths against her exposed neck, and drips of saliva against her creamy skin.

"You will not have her!" a powerful, tremendously angry voice boomed, assailing the beast with a hail of bullets.

Esther watched as Abel lunged at the beast, a foot to its throat, the hammer to his gun cocked, poised to blast its head off at the slightest provocation.

_MY BABY MY FAMILY! WHY? _

"In the name of Augusta Vradica, I order you to cease and desist!" Esther screamed above the thing's agonizing screams.

_You know the empress? Oh please, have mercy! Please, help me!_

"Abel, please, let her speak!" Esther begged.

Abel's eyes widened. "She's speaking to you?" he asked incredulously.

Esther nodded. He quickly released the thing who lay itself before Esther, who had been grounded in her weakness.

The Methuselah's, as it was known, face became apparent, one of a diseased hag with wrinkles over every inch of her green skin, eyes nearly consumed beneath sagging flesh. A prominent, beaked nose hooked over her small, hideously infected mouth where two single fangs poked out. Her eyes were a raging red, with no iris or pupil to be seen; a haunting effect. Every malady possible infected her skin, from warts to festering wounds to missing fingers on her hands...it was too disgusting to bear, but Esther felt no repulsion from the female. Greasy hair like bunched and decaying worms spilled over her disgusting face. Her body was an emaciated form that was only skin and grossly protruding bones that was now sprawled on the ground before Esther.

Hands took Esther's, which made a jealous rage flare within Abel, his gun instantly fixed to the hag's temple.

"Abel, please!"

The man growled harshly, removing the gun grudgingly, but remained possessively close to Esther's side.

_Oh, you beautiful child, you will help me, won't you?_ The hag crooned, a pathetic attempt of a smile spreading over its canted face.

"Of course I will!" she cried desperately, remembering Sherah's own plight.

_My children were stolen from me! _she wailed,_ My children were stolen four years ago by them! Their bodies were torn and shred, and their heads cast into the sewers __below! I went to them to beg for them, but instead they tortured me! They made me as I am! Men dressed as dark as night came and stole them! They steal the children of us, and of the humans as well! They steal and tear ANDRENDANDNOOO!_ she screamed, splitting Esther's mind.

"My hands..." Esther gasped, the wailing Methuselah clenched them so tightly, they were nearly breaking. "Agh!"

Abel viciously tore the woman away, standing as a wall between them. He aimed the gun point blank, a vicious snarl ripping from his throat, the Crusnik within growing restless for a kill.

The hag spirited to Abel's front, clutching his chest.

_Destroy me, Crusnik! Destroy me and let me be at peace with my children! Avenge them, avenge them!_

Abel trained it to her temple, blasting her brains and blood to the floor. His lips suddenly darkened and his eyes seared a glowing crimson.

Esther watched in horror as he lunged for the Methuselah's throat, loud gulps filling the room sickeningly. A scream tore from her throat and she ripped from the room, tearing down the hall.

The young girl struggled to escape the airship, heaving open a latched exit with every ounce of waning strength she could muster. She fell to the grassy field rendered to shreds by the earlier, desperate landing. Her limbs heavy with weakness, she began a frenzied crawl away, trying to make way to the other survivors comforting each other in pockets around the fallen craft.

Her nose suddenly picked up the overwhelming fumes of gasoline, whirling around to see it leaking in distorting waves, small flames billowing in the wind at random spaces on its flank. She knew well enough what this would entail, realizing with horror that the explosion would be far reaching, and the people gathered around would most likely..._die_.

Throat too constricted to speak, she watched in a frenzied panic as people sat listlessly in the field, her own vision swirling and blurring and finally blinding, her senses seemingly destroyed.

Then, the loudest blast she ever thought she'd ever hear rocked the earth to its core.

* * *

><p><em>"Esther?"<em>

_"Esther, please wake up!"_

_"Lord, let her be okay!"_

_Fa...ther?_

_"Oh God, you're awake! Dear Lord...!"_

_Father, am I dead?_

"**NO**! No... You're fine. You're fine..." a terribly shaken voice assured, a presence cuddling her dearly to their form.

Abel's voice entered her mind with feeble clarity. She wrenched her eyes open, everything coming into blinding focus. The first thing she saw were cascades of divine silver and beautiful, steel blue eyes that were all the reassurance she'd ever need in the world. She felt herself being cradled to a bare chest, feeling a warm and steady heartbeat pound into her ear.

"What happened to the woman? We need to help her, Abel!" Esther cried in a panic, trying to force herself to stand, when vertigo and his vice on her kept her against him.

"She died in the blast, Esther...and so did many of the other passengers. There was nothing I could do but save you," Abel explained, rocking her back in forth, frenzied by his fear at having nearly lost her again.

"Did anyone survive?" she asked insistently, locking her gaze with his as he was forced to release her slightly.

"A few did. Medics are treating them now," Abel said, Esther motioning to rise and assist in any way that she could.

Abel kept her imprisoned in his embrace, Esther fighting against him. "Father, please! I have to help them! It's my duty! Just let. Me. GO!" Her shaking head created a whiplash of red against his face, but instead he pinned her to the ground, locking her wrists in a vice, looming over her with an expression wrenched by fear and worry.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Abel thundered, cutting her from her pointless struggle.

"I don't want to be useless!" Esther cried back, tears beginning to build in her eyes.

Abel, absolutely defeated, released. Like a foal after birth, she struggled to stand, but her muscles gave way and her legs buckled. He watched, feeling torn apart by her weakness, eyes clouded with sadness.

"Why...?" A failed attempt. "No, please..." Another try, more tears. "No!" she cried out in frustration, defeated as she heaved her sobs into the parched spring earth.

Abel took her in his arms again, letting her cry against his blood-stained chest, but neither seemed to care for the other's filth from the explosion.

"We have to help her, Abel, we just have to..." she said weakly after crying it out. "We can't stop. We just can't." She saw the woman's struggle just like she saw Sherah's from not even a month before.

"I know... I know."

* * *

><p>Last Thoughts: DRAMATIC CLIFF-HANGER IS DRAMATIC. Okay, not really.<p>

Erm, welcome to my first attempt of a Trinity Blood fanfiction! The whole reason of this fic was for some good, old-fashioned AbelxEsther luvin' and a possible excuse for Esther to be with Abel furevuuuuur. While I just started reading the manga start to the current chapter about a week ago, I love it. Seriously, though? Read the manga over seeing the anime first. The anime is nice, but it's no where nearly as good as the manga's rich, evocative art and story. I honestly am not sure as to how you'll react to this fic, but I did my best to keep the characters IC, but I'm no vet to the series, so please firmly tell me if I'm going off on a tangent. I'm going to try my best to blend humor, love, and my luffly-duffly gorn in a way that will make you think of the series, hoping that you think that the plot is a-ok, too. I don't want this to be completely alienated from the main in any way, so if you've been a fan longer then I have, please tell me if I'm screwing anything up. I'm a stickler to keeping things as canon as possible in my fanfics, so I just hope that details live up to the godly standard of that which is Sunao Yoshida-sama's work of AWESOME.

About the fic: This takes places roughly before the start of the Londonium arc, instead a month after Sherah's sacrifice. and of course is 100% AU in the fact that it's like the Londonium arc never existed... Anyway, the basic idea is that Abel (who I'm gonna tweak his age to be 999 instead of 972) has to find a mate/bride before his Millennial and produce an heir (who will end up being a genetic Crusnik) else he risks dying completely...which is bad because he needs to still kill his brother Cain (which was an unresolved plot bunny in both the manga and anime...not too sure about the novellas, though). Aside from that, I thought it would spice it up nicely if I added a counter-plot alongside this one to allow for some ass-whuppin' and bonding for Abel and Esther, which I thought would be nice since the manga seems to run on arcs like this anyway... The villain is undetermined at this point, but I will be hitting up any wikis that I can find and research into this more. Anyway, this criminal syndicate has been harvesting the organs of humans and Methuselah alike, and are based in Madrid, Spain. This is causing friction between the Terran and the Methuselah who want to blame the other, since they've been in contention for an extremely long time, and something like this could spark another war between the two. So, in a time frame of, lemme say, a few months, Abel has to find a bride and crack the case before his Millennium, or else everyone's plans are kaput.

A lot more info will come in later chapters...but I just don't feel like turning my footnotes into a separate story, ya know?

By the way, if there are grammatical errors or spelling mistakes, please forgive me since LibreOffice seems to have a non-existent spell-check as far as I'm concerned, so I've been correcting things line by line and there might be some inconsistencies there. Hopefully, running it through ffnet's editing software might make things a bit more peachy keen.

Anywho, expect a new chappie soon, okies? :3

~Peace, G.


	2. Her Saving Grace

As Is

_Her Saving Grace_

(Warnings: Blood, lots of gore, betrayal, a battle, some non-sexual nudity, mind-bending and brainwashing, a little desperate romance)

* * *

><p>"You are from out of town, si?"<p>

"Yes, of sorts."

Hitching a ride in a wagon was never easy, especially when your belongings had burned up in a fire and you looked more like a serial killer with a hostage, when you were just a humble priest wishing to find refuge for yourself and your exquisitely beautiful young partner who had fallen unconscious.

"Su compañero es muy precioso, si se me permite decirlo," the man commented, flicking the reins to encourage his horses into a steady trot over the hilly terrain and dusty roads.

Abel sighed, stroking a lock of hair from her peaceful face as he held her in his arms. "Esto me recuerda todos los días, señor. Yo sería un hombre feliz, aunque yo la vi una vez..." he replied almost too softly, feeling as if he held heaven in his arms. She was all he needed to feel at peace.

"Ah, it's good to find a foreigner who is so well-educated," the driver said, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. "Would you like one, señor?"

Abel considered it, then shook his head. "No, gracias."

They passed through the Spanish countryside in sanguine silence, Abel feeling strangely at peace. This region seemed particularly remote, but it was hilly with large swaths of forests off in the distance. The grass was fairly low cut that swayed in the sweet, late spring winds, dotted with colorful wildflowers that bobbed cheerfully with every gust of wind. Forests were in utter seclusion because of the high hills crowned with emerald shoots of grass. The sky seemed especially vast and untamed, without pyres and far-reaching skyscrapers that seemed to cage in its power. Here he felt humbled and at its mercy, but he felt no threat from the rolling clouds or their wispy ribbons that stretched across the blue expanse. The only place he felt so at home was his sister's empire, although even it felt sordid and crowded at times compared to this.

"May I ask which region we are in, señor?" Abel suddenly asked, pulled from his rapture.

"This is the Soria province, just northwest of Madrid. Just a word of caution: there have been mass murders in this region along in the capital. Those damn vampires are taking children, men, women—whomever they can get their fangs on. The town nearest here was recently struck the worst."

"May we stop at this village, señor?" The man gave him a weary eye, then trained his own ahead.

"Si, but I must ask you something: were you at all involved with the wreckage of the plane of a few hours ago? I've never heard such a loud blast in my life..." the man recounted, shivering slightly. He made a quick Sign of the Cross while clutching a Rosary in hand, then kissing the crucifix.

"We were passengers," Abel began, deciding to lie, "and my wife and I wanted to stay in Madrid for our honeymoon." Luckily, the torn clothing was too indistinguishable to reveal his true place as a Father.

"Ah, but why would you want to stay in such a village? The nearby one is beautiful, I'll admit, but you wouldn't want to endanger your wife, now would you?"

"We lost all of our luggage and want to find a cheap place to spend the night before we go to Madrid, hopefully to replenish our cash and items," Abel explained. How he wished that this lie was true.

"Alright. You look as you could use it anyway." The wagon crested a fairly steep hill, Abel bracing himself and Esther as they did, then taking in the picturesque view of the quaint little mountain village secluded in forests, its secret breached when they crested the hill.

Constructed of Medieval, Romanesque architecture, such a village seemed to be well over a thousand years old, although it was extremely charming in nature. A single road paved with cobbled stones cut through, created a sloping terrace where several buildings were built along, each nestled closely together, with pastures and charming farm land further down the slope. Like a secret, it was almost invisible except to those who took the effort to discover it.

"It doesn't look like a place that was strafed by any attacks recently," Abel noted, craning his head as the horses picked their way down the hill. Indeed, it looked like any other sixteenth century village: historical, and alluring in its charm. Just the sort of place a money-starved priest like himself could afford to stay in. And, by looks of it, the money would be coming out of his pocket tonight.

"The attacks were just a few weeks before, that is certain. But, signs of the attack remain. Try to be safe, senor. An attractive young woman like your wife will surely be a target if those vampires would have their way," the man warned, spitting a loogie onto the ground, making Abel shirk back a little in disgust.

"Thank you, I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

* * *

><p>Esther's eyes were filled with a thick film, and blinking several times made her clearly see where she was.<p>

In a small cabin-like place, weak sunlight filtered through a dusty window and permeated throughout the single bedroom home. The floor was dusty, cracked cement, with the walls made of severely aging drywall, supporting by thick wooden beams and supports. Dust swam through the thick, musty air, apparent as it danced lethargically in the beams of sunlight. She rested in a musty bed with thin, tattered sheets, strewn over a mattress as hard as a brick. Since it was lined against a wall, a small nightstand stood to her left, with a quaint stove and a single chair in the rightmost corner, parallel to the bed almost.

Sitting up, she timidly called, "Father? Where are you?" With no reply, she stood up, flinching at the cold stone floor. Her body ached all over and it stung especially at her back and waist, vividly remembering details from yesterday's battle with the distraught Methuselah. Tears pooled in her eyes as she recalled Abel delivering the final, fatal blow and draining her of her blood before Esther escaped from the impending explosion.

She still recalled the Methuselah's pain-laced voice with shocking clarity, and how it begged to be destroyed. She felt utterly useless, like when Sherah died not even a month before. The pain of her friend's passing haunted her every night, and tortured her with guilt. But, even through they couldn't help the woman from yesterday, it was what they decided to do now that would make all the difference.

Her eyes wandered to the chair where Abel's tattered uniform lay, his boots neatly in a row with her own. Though, a new uniform hung from a peg on a mantlepiece where an empty fireplace waited in abandonment. She noticed with embarrassment the wrappings around her chest and waist, cheeks burning hotly. It felt that most of the blood had been cleaned off, deduced by the empty bucket and bloodstained rag slung over its rim that rested quietly by the stove.

Esther found her tattered dress slung over the chair, and although it was bloodstained, she couldn't help but see that someone had tried scrubbing the stains out, now blotched with pink; she smiled at the thoughtful gesture. Seeps of light illuminated the floor for about half a meter, briefly interrupted by the activity of the passerby milling about outside.

_I have to find Abel. I have too many questions for him_, she thought, pulling on her boots and opening the door.

Waiting outside was a testament to the past, with homes of at least two stories high nestled together with claustrophobic closure, a narrow strip of cobbled road below and a thin ribbon of sky above. Green vines dribbled from garden baskets hung above, cascading down like waterfalls. Each home was charming and rather aged, yet she could tell that technology had played its part in preserving each of them perfectly, even the denizens speaking into earpieces, though they were a little aged by Vatican standards. Goats, sheep, and other livestock were herded through the streets, men on horseback calling out flirtatious greetings to her, which sounded slightly like Latin.

She found a woman selling bread from a cart, and went up to her, shyly asking, "Excuse me, but have you seen a man with long silver hair pulled back by a ribbon?"

The woman brightened. "Si, senorita! The handsome stranger went to bathe at Laguna Rojo just down the hill." Esther noticed with a touch of envy the heavy blush on the middle-aged woman's face, but thanked her and sprinted down the hill.

Beyond several enclosed pastures, Esther picked her way down a hill where she saw the wide and long lake in question, it a perfect mirror to the beautifully azure sky.

Rimmed by a several coves of trees and some wildly grown shrubs, only some of its flanks were exposed, cupped by the hills that secluded the village. She decided upon the forest, trekking through until she came to the lake's shoreline.

To her utter embarrassment, she saw as a man broke the surface of the water, his lean, muscular build revealed to his waist. The man pushed back his long, silver hair, flexing his fairly bulging biceps as he did so. She dipped beneath a line of high hedges as the man surveyed the area, his sharp, steel-blue eyes sweeping over it, an uncharacteristically serious look on his extremely handsome face. Without his glasses and usual get-up, Father Abel looked a little intimidating.

And hot.

Esther started at the lone thought as it wandered through her mind, and a blush bloomed over her face.

Father Nightroad, HOT?

What was so HOT about being a massive glutton (a cardinal sin, mind you!)?

Was being a total pervert HOT?

Is being annoying HOT?

The young girl mentally 'x'-ed out all of the following, smugly smiling to herself. She was still sane yet~

"Perhaps I should return to check on Esther..." The girl in question was broken from her self-admonishment, perking to the sound of Abel's voice.

"She's so cute when she's asleep~" the older man added with a light lilt to his voice, completely ruining the badass image he had going. Esther face-planted into the moist dirt, realizing with a vengeance that Father Nightroad had probably seen her body when he'd bandaged her. Her face burned hotly with shame at the thought of him doing that.

"Ah, hello? Is someone there?" he called out, looking in her general direction, despite his apparent near-blindness, which made her start sharply.

Panicking, Esther rose into a crouch and broke into a sprint, leveled low to the ground. She took off behind the line of bushes, imagining Abel chasing after her in the nude which added more fuel to the flames.

"Wait, please, don't be frightened! Let me see you!" Abel called out again, spurring Esther to lengthen her gait.

She ran for what seemed an interminable length of time, until she was far enough away to see him only as a dot with silver hair on the horizon. Finding a secluded lagoon, albeit being fairly small, she breathed a sigh of relief she she sank down to the shore of the crystalline blue waters, panting heavily with beads on sweat trailing down her face.

She was out of sight as far as Abel was concerned, and it was here that she decided to cleanse herself.

The lagoon in question was a beautiful, clear aquamarine in color with silver-backed fish sporting their glittering scales beneath the surface. Escapes of sunlight centered in the pool, the umbrage of the trees sweeping down the shade it for the most part with complete privacy. The sun leaked through the emerald leaves, making Esther feel at peace and relaxed. She was well aware of how filthy she felt, so she glanced around once before stripping off her clothes and peeling of the dirtied bandages. She glanced down in horror at the large purple bruise on her abdomen, and flinched as she felt one along her back.

Esther bristled at the memory of Abel having shoved her back to collide with the hardware and gore of the cockpit during the earlier battle, probably the thing responsible for the state she was currently in.

"He gets so aggressive in battle. Lord, teach him to be patient and gentle...!" Esther huffed in exasperation to the sky, receiving as a cool rustling of the wind through the trees as her only reply.

"He's fine when he's not being aggressive or in his Crusnik form. Gosh, there's still so much I don't know about him. Like how old he really is, or what he's been doing with his life before we met. I don't know much about his siblings...or Lilith. That 04 Crusnik...he loved her, didn't he? That's what I heard Lady Caterina tell me about a week ago... I wonder if he still does..." Esther mumbled, easing herself into the water.

The water was surprisingly deep, reaching up past her chest and almost to her collarbone. She dipped down a few times, scrubbing through her hair and over her body, feeling a lot more refreshed for every breath she took.

She began to float on her back, letting the deliciously cool water act like a cloud to support her, lightly treading water with small movements of her wrists.

"Lady Caterina knows him better, and so does Father Tres, Sister Kate, and even Father Petros...they all know him better than I ever will. I haven't even known him for a year. And he still seems so sad and detached when no one is addressing him."

"He must be thinking about her. He must love her so much. And I bet that she was beautiful, like a goddess. I bet she's perfect. I know that she died, but even then he must still love her," Esther whispered, murmurings creating small waves on the water as she ceased floating and stood dead center of the deliciously cool pool.

Unwanted tears began to form her her eyes, and they fell into the pool. Although she couldn't help but notice the sinking sun and the clouds beginning to become colored, and although Father Abel would most likely be looking for her, she didn't care. She felt too jealous and sad to bother facing him.

"I-I joined the AX for nothing! I'm j-just a money-bank to him...a pillow...an annoyance that gets in his way..." Esther murmured in pathetic defeat, her shoulders shaking with every sob, her hands cupped over her face. Everything made sense to her now. He didn't see her as a woman or something greater. She was a child to be protected and nothing else. All her efforts, all the time she spent following him, looking for answers, was in absolute vain.

She was standing in the deepest part of the water. How tempting it could be to just run away and _escape it all_.

"Oh my, why is such a beautiful young girl like you crying all alone?" Esther started at the sound of the voice.

Whirling around, before her stood an exquisitely beautiful, buxom woman. Her long, raven her the reached to her back made her extremely aware of her dishevelled short locks, her beautifully made-up face delicately accented already beautiful features, her creamy skin like the moon and her dark, large eyes were like the mysterious night sky.

She wore a slinky dress that pooled around her like water cascading down a mountain. Ashamed of her state of nakedness, she wrapped her arms around her bosom in a semblance of modesty.

"I-I was just bathing..." Esther explained lamely, painfully aware of the red streaks that spoiled her cheeks compared to the flawless woman.

"Oh? You must not be from around here. This is actually something of a private spot for me," the woman explained, taking a hand to her chin.

"I'm sorry!" Esther babbled. "I'll leave right away." She was ready to surge from the water for her clothing, but the woman shook her head.

"It's quite all right," she laughed in a ringing voice. "Just because I like to come here doesn't mean that it's mine. Besides, why would I mind sharing it with such a very beautiful young girl?"

"Beautiful? No, you're the beautiful one. I thought you weren't human to be honest," Esther confessed, feeling stupid from still being in the water.

"Oh dear, poor girl. You must have faith in yourself. Now if a stranger who you consider to be beautiful deems you beautiful, then doesn't that make it the truth?" the woman crouched down, tilting her head to the side.

"I-I guess..." Esther agreed with uncertainty in her voice.

"There we go. Now, why don't you tell me your name?" the woman encouraged.

"I'm Esther Blanchett."

The woman smiled, nearly pouting with such full lips. "What a charming name. I am Stella Luna, and I'm a shepherdess of the village."

"You don't look like..."

"Oh, my clothes?" Stella intoned. "These are bathing clothes, silly. It's not necessary to wear them, but it adds a bit of dissuasion for easily tempted men. You're that famous Lady-Saint, aren't you?"

"Yes..." Esther admitted, glancing sidelong anxiously.

"You're very well-loved in Spain. Many devout Catholics who hate Methuselah admire you deeply. It's a shame that they don't abide by your ideals," Stella sighed.

Esther's eyes flared passionately. "You understand? They're not our enemies! I just don't understand why people can't see that they're hardly different from us. They feel as we do, they cry when they're sad, they love..." she broke off, bowing her head as fresh tears beaded in her eyes.

"Oh my, you're having trouble in love? Come, put this on and let us talk." Stella extended her hand that held a light yellow sundress which Esther took.

The young nun rushed to replace her undergarments as Stella turned around for privacy's sake, then pulling the dress clumsily over her head. It only came to about her upper thighs like a floaty summer dress, not exactly reassuring to one used to modest clothing all her life.

She sank by the shore of the lagoon, letting the water lap up her feet. Stella did more or less the same, both sitting side-by-side.

"Tell your big sister all of your troubles," Stella urged soothingly, encouraging Esther to rest her head upon the older woman's shoulder.

Esther began to feel drowsy, and somewhat numb. Words began to pour from her mouth as she spoke her mind.

"I'm in love with this man...who has been in love with someone who died. He still loves her to this day, and I've come to realize that I'm nothing but a child to him," Esther confessed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I know nothing of him, and I've barely known him for a year. Everyone around him has known him for so long, while I'm just the shadow who walks behind who can never truly be with him. This woman he loves...she's an absolute goddess. She was the same as him, and only she and his two siblings, who went through the exact same ordeals together, truly understand him. His heart is sealed to me. He's been alive for so long, and I'm nothing but a baby to him."

"He must be powerful to have been alive for so long. Speak child, more of him," Stella crooned, winding her long, elegant fingers through Esther's hair.

"He—"

"Tell me his name," Stella urged.

"—His name is Father Abel Nightroad." Esther's eyes became blurry, and she felt so sleepy. Nothing felt threatening. If only she could be taken away from this heartless life and be free of pain forever...

"Ah! The Crusnik! Let me tell you, child..." Stella purred. "Lilith is the one he loves. Did you know he entombed himself with her for almost a thousand years? They were enemies during Armageddon, little girl, and even when they fought against each other their love was still extremely strong. He loves her so much, he must see her in his dreams, in his daytime fantasies... His love is unbearably strong, is it not?"

"How do you know this?" Esther asked, her voice blurring to her senses. Only Stella's words were clear in her mind, for the world was melting and nothing else mattered, except listening to her...

"I am the spirit of this laguna, child. I listen to pleas, I listen to everyone's sorrows, and I grant wishes. He was in my lake, and his memories told me everything... He loves Lilith, and he will never love you..." Stella teased into her ear.

Esther sniffed loudly. "You're right," she choked, "why would I ever think otherwise?"

"What is your wish, child? Don't you wish to be taken far away from this place? To be free of pain and sorrow once and for all?" Stella pouted, nuzzling into Esther's shoulder, her raven-black, curly hair nestling on the girl's skin.

"Yes." Esther furrowed her brows, bowing her head. "Please, take me away from here!"

"Such a beautiful, obedient child. My love and father, Cain, will be pleased with you. He will love us, my dear, and you will become one with Us," Stella sighed, taking Esther by her hand and in the lagoon, the girl following suit blindly.

"Esther, NO!" Esther turned heedlessly to the sound of the voice, her expression unnaturally detached.

Abel stood at the shore, watching in horror as the girl he loved was being taken by a monster, a being created by his wretched brother.

The Crusnik's Shadow was the name of the mate of the Crusniks, and only humans of the opposite sex could assume such a role. The human didn't became a Methuselah as the he had wrongly thought; instead, they became immortal and gained abilities like regeneration of a low grade and some healing powers, which could be used to heal their Crusnik mate. His sister, Seth, explained that Cain had found a human, bequeathed on to her some of his nanomachines, and turned her into a Shadow that was both mate and child, ensuring Cain's immortality for all eternity, even should his Shadow die. How Cain had gone about that, he was unsure, or how he had done that, but either way it was evidence enough to Cain's despicable nature.

"Please, Esther, come back!" Abel pleaded, rushing into the water, waist-deep, as Stella feinted away with Esther in her clutches

"See him, Esther? The one clad in despicable black, a holy Father. And sees you as nothing but a daughter," Stella hissed into Esther's ear, out of Abel's earshot, possessively holding Esther by her waist and face, having it so the girl was turned towards her.

Esther turned away from Abel, her eyes trained on the wide lake to come.

"Esther! I can't protect you if you listen to her. Please, come back..." Abel weakly begged, almost on his chest as he sloshed into the water more.

"If he doesn't return with you, he'll be punished for losing you. You're just another human for him to protect under the promise he made to Lilith. Her promise is the only reason that he's not locked away with a dead, miserable woman who betrayed the Methuselah. You've seen the wickedness and corruption of humanity. Join with the true side and know true love," Stella hissed one last time into the girl's ear. She waved her hands over Esther's ears and eyes, her ears becoming plugged with gold and her eyes blinded by silver.

"Hear me, Abel Nightroad! Betrayer of the Methuselah and dog of the Vatican! You will die as your stupid woman did and know the pain felt by Methuselah everywhere! This girl will join us, and be your enemy forever!"

With a violet flap of her mermaid-like tale, she disappeared beneath the waves, Esther in her clutches, leaving Abel in utter silence.

"What have I done?" he demanded of himself.

_You're relinquishing her to him._

"I will do no such thing!"

_Why is that?_ His inner-self challenged.

"I love her. She means more to me than anyone," Abel said vehemently.

_More then Lilith, the woman you devoted yourself to for almost a thousand years?_

"Yes, even Lilith..." Abel responded weakly, remembering all those years of pain and agony.

_Would you devote yourself to that whelp of a child for two thousand years? Three?_

"I will devote myself to her for all of eternity."

_Why is that?_

"Because, I love her absolutely, and I'll do whatever it takes to protect her" Abel vowed, rising to stand.

Then why are you still here?

**Crusnik 02**

**Release of Restrictions to 40% - Confirmed.**

* * *

><p><em>"My child, everything that I tell you is the total truth. Why should listen to that abhorrent, deceitful traitor?"<em>

_I thought that I could trust him._

_"How? He's done nothing but hurl you in the path of chaos and pain. He sees you has a tool and nothing else."_

_He was kind to me, saved me._

_"Those are merely sugar-coated tricks he used to deceive you. He wanted you to be successful, groomed you like a pet, all so that he could reap in the bounty of your prestige. Everything you think he's done to help you is to fool you. He wants you to become powerful, to side with the humans, and turn Methuselah from the light of truth, to believe that we're demons that deserve naught but death, to hate their beautiful existence cloaked by night. He wants us destroyed and humans to reign supreme, so that he can rest with his Lilith forever. He wants nothing to do with Methuselah, whom he considers to be cattle to be led to slaughter. Why else do the Crusnik exist?"_

_What about Cain?_

_"Our brother created the Rosenkreuz Orden knowing full well the truth of his nature. He saw the wickness of the Crusniks' existence, who were artificial from the very beginning. And yet, he understood that Crusniks are but another species of Methuselah. He rebelled against those evil humans and created the Orden so that we Methuselah could find salvation and live our lives in fairness, in hopes that we may someday live above the wicked humans who sought to destroy us for millennia. You are seeing exactly what brother Cain saw. He sees through the eyes that you do. Someday, the world will live under brother Cain's rule, in a new Empire for Methuselah, by Methuselah. Humans must learn their place."_

_They killed Sherah. Those Terrans killed my best friend._

_"You see? They poisoned you, turned you against a beautiful Methuselah who was so full of life. They used her in a plot to make you a figurehead, a mascot of the Vatican and symbol of their wont to oppress and destroy the Methuselah completely, and reign over the Earth. Humans and Methuselah cannot exist as one. If you turn the Vatican on itself, my child, you can became like the ones you love. You can become part of the just, the free. Humans do nothing but destroy themselves, the planet, and other races who want nothing to do with them. You see this truth, yes?"_

_You're right. I will join you, Stella._

_"A beautiful child. You were born to be Methuselah. A human with a Methuselah's heart. We shall change you into one soon enough, my dear. Just listen to big brother, Cain..."_

* * *

><p>The village became usurped by panic as a frightening creature readied itself on the shores of the laguna, the townspeople overcome with fear, sheltering themselves in their homes and leaving their livestock to fend for themselves. The sky became quickly darkened, volts of electricity darting down from the heavens to be absorbed by two full black wings raised in exaltation to the sky. A scythe of wicked red power was twirled for a moment, and the being's eyes became dangerously fixed on the roiling waters like a tumultuous sea.<p>

Stella stood on the opposite shore, sheathed in a shield all encompassing, sitting on her knees with Esther on her lap like a limp doll. Although her appearance was more of a becoming goddess, Abel couldn't help but realize that Stella was an almost an identical replication of Lilith, which made his heart twist and tighten in agony. Even worse still was the whisperings Stella poured into Esther's mind, which he knew would be directly controlled by Cain himself.

His heart became awash in fear and anger at the thought of Esther serving him, the man who had made his life eternally miserable. He'd been blinded by his brother's ideals, until Lilith had shown him the light. And now, Esther was the one he was fighting for, and his love for her could drive him to do anything.

"What will you do, Crusnik? You wouldn't dare destroy your precious human, now would you? If only you could hear her thoughts, and her hatred of you and you murderous humans!" Stella called tauntingly across the lake, caressing Esther's hair in such a way that made him feel sick to his core.

Charges of electricity built up within his wings, and he gathered it within his body, releasing it into his scythe, where he unleashed it into the lake with a deathly pierce. The water boiled and something within the waters writhed violently, surges of water bombarding the shore, flooding the level ground as the lake churned and roiled violently like the waters of the Bering Sea.

"I'm afraid that my pet is not very fond of Crusnik who are not my love," Stella taunted, teasingly poising her fangs over Esther's neck in a cruel smile, the tips brushing past her skin. Not even Abel's warning blast could deter her from inspiring his ire.

Abel cried out in rage, furiously raising his scythe and bringing it down with a violet force that tore the lake asunder, cleaving the waters in two, the waters leaping forth with a mighty roar like geysers. The beast that had been lying below, easily large enough to nestle comfortably at the bottom, sprung up and roared defiantly at the enemy before it, tearing from the oppressive weight of the lake with a calamitous splash.

The _snap-crack!_ of its unfurled beating wings brought the creature aloft, revealing itself to be a great wyvern, easily a hundred feet long in length or more, its wings nearly twice that size. Its massive head was the size of the room they'd recently been occupying, and when it opened its maw, its insides seared like the opening of a volcano, shooting hot cinders, sparks, and ash to pelt the ground, charring the pastures. It continued to beat its wings, suspended midair, sending great waves of wind that made the trees bow in supplication to its power. Tough, shining black scales like onyx glanced off sunlight, and the membrane of mighty wings spread like parchment to blot out the sun with each heave to keep it aloft. Its tail was armed with a mace of spikes that could easily whip any enemy to the ground. With no forelegs, its wings were like front limbs, while its massive hind legs were tucked beneath it.

It bellowed a challenge to Abel, the man curling his lips to snarl in return.

And so, their battle began.

* * *

><p><em>"Do you see how desperately this man wants you, for those treacherous humans? He wants for us to die quite badly. I'm sure he wished for Sherah's death if it meant bringing for you more power for them to wield against us. A self-initiated plan on their pope to frame an innocent Methuselah and make you a saint through murder. Why should you continue to serve demons like that who are willing to sacrifice any life necessary to justify their rampant genocide of dissenters and Methuselah?" Stella purred through her mind.<em>

Esther remembered every day spent against the Vatican, at how they seemed to do anything to destroy the Methuselah. Memories, twisted by Stella's all-incumbent design, altered her perceptions and completely warped her mind to for the woman's ministrations.

These new sickened her, filled her with a new, unbridled hate for the people she blindly followed and obeyed; she was now completely forgetting what had made her who she was.

_The woman, the who had her children stolen from her._

_"An innocent denizen of the night who had her children stolen by traitor Methuselah in league with the Vatican and experimented on by murderous humans, who merely are expressing their true natures. You see why they must die? Don't you remember how that Crusnik mercilessly destroyed her instead of letting her die in peace? He drained her like an uncivilized beast. Cain abhors such actions against brethren. He takes his blood in small quantities from willing volunteers, and hates himself daily for his nature. The Vatican's beastly Crusnik thinks nothing of those he kills, and sees them only as prey."_

_I'll never forgive him for what he's done._

_"My precious child...hold fast to your your hate, for it will make you stronger..."_

* * *

><p>The dragon bellowed as it caught the scythe in its jaws, Abel twisting and wrenching and he tried to free it from the wyvern's vice. He leapt upon the beast's head as it began to climb into the air, becoming airborne, charging up a massive reservoir of electricity and delivering it to the dragon's core.<p>

It shuddered and released his scythe, but began to hurtle into the lake, taking him with it, a blinding surge of water momentarily blinding the Crusnik.

The water filled his vision with a murky awareness, but his wicked crimson eyes were able to locate it effortlessly. The dragon maneuvered its body like an eel, ramming into Abel.

He lost his breath momentarily, but he used his wings to regain balance in the water. It charged again, this time he received a considerable blow. He gasped, choking on the water as it rushed into his lungs.

Swimming as fast as he could to the surface, he took in a mighty gasp for air, only to find the beast snatching him by his ankles with the razor-sharp teeth in its deep maw like a rag doll and violently whipping him about like a dog before hurling him above the surface, helpless as he was suspended in the air momentarily.

A column of thickly concentrated flames exploded from the water, engulfing him and consuming him whole.

His wings instinctively encased the Crusnik, but they were badly singed, electricity sparking off, he having lost the charge.

"_This beast...is powerful..._" Abel gasped is his gravelly voice, hacking up blood.

His wings unfurled and thrashed his wings vigorously to keep him aloft, each effort bringing him mind-numbing pain.

The wyvern soon joined him, circling him like a vulture and roaring. It blasted him several times with heat not even Satan could bear, his wings barely shielding him from every assault.

Abel grit his fangs and screamed hell at the beast, careening towards it with several mighty flaps, readying his scythe.

He unleashed a sickening salvo of blows to its face and limbs, tearing ligaments and making it bleed murder before its master.

"Do you think it will fall so easily, Crusnik?" Stella shrieked defiantly, the dragon roaring with its master's cries.

Abel glared death at the Shadow woman, silencing her while she continued to distort and change Esther's mind completely, only serving to fuel the fire of his fury.

He was viciously lanced through by several spikes of the dragon's mace of a tail, spitting up blood from the devastating blow.

Still speared through by the dragon, it descended sharply to the earth, pounding its tail where Abel was wounded through, further sheathing the spikes through his body, churning up earth and stone, creating craters from each and every impact.

_You need to unleash more of your power_! His other self screamed in alarm, sensing that Abel was soon reaching his limit.

The dragon barreled into the lake, violently twisting and turning as it dislodged Abel into the water, slapping its tail furiously, soon breaking through the extremely roughened waters, sending blasts of heat from its maw just above the water, flapping its wings powerfully to keep it just meters above it, the boiling tempest surely enough to keep its prey trapped, where the Crusnik would hopefully drown.

It looked like it would be over, the wyvern roaring triumphantly as it flew above the basin of water.

Stella smiled smugly to herself, stroking the hair of her now masterless pet.

**Crusnik 02**

**Release of Restrictions to 80% - Confirmed**

The water became blasted into the atmosphere in the most terrific geyser ever witnessed, creating an empty basin where the lake once reposed, hot tendrils of impossibly thick fog settling over every meter of the area.

Stella swallowed nervously. "It seems your master has a little fight in him still, my pet," she cooed in Esther's ear, her eyes trained upon her grounded dragon, the weakened creature on the weary alert.

"_You were a Methuselah once_."

Shivers trembled down Stella's spine at the sound of the voice like a death knell. Her eyes widened in fear, and her hands began to tremble.

Stella clenched Esther like the girl was a shield, trembling violently.

Suddenly, one of the dragon's hind legs ricocheted off the shield, twisting and squirming only a few feet away, the stench of its blood filling her nose with iron and her mind with horror.

"MY BABY!" the Shadow screeched, feeling the dragon's pain rock to her very core.

Through the fog, she saw a terrifying silhouette rip off one of the dragon's wings like it was a blade of grass to a child.

Stella loosened her hold on the now unconscious nun, writhing in pain to the ground, Esther slumping to the side lifelessly. She screamed in agony, pearls of sweat glistening on her skin. She kept up the shield as it wavered sharply, panting and sobbing all at once.

A great spray of blood rained from the air on the shield, the last two limbs torn asunder and spasming in different areas as blood began to pool around them.

Stella screamed and wailed, rivaling even a banshee in her powerful cries, which would've deafened any human.

The dragon lost its roars and began caterwauling like a hog, its limbless body twisting and convulsing, flailing its head and tail, slamming the earth from its tremors of terror.

It became impaled by Abel's wings, the dragon's body raised off of the ground, Abel throwing his head back in ecstasy as the former Methuselah's blood began to quench his ever insatiable hunger, softly cackling as it sated him completely. Blood from the severed limbs became suspended in the air, rushing all at once towards the Crusnik, the vampire's vampire chuckling darkly as the blood drenched his thirst to its core.

Those wings hurled away the now lifeless corpse into a charred copse of trees, he training his deadly red eyes on Stella, the woman now terrified as her shield completely fell.

Desperately eying the area like the prey she now was, she shrunk back in fear.

"Please, have mercy!" she screamed.

One look at Esther's unconscious form, another at Stella.

Abel's decision was made.

His wings closed in around her, where he terrified screams became muffled and finally silenced as she was drained entirely of blood.

* * *

><p>Esther awoke with a terrified start, her hands sweating, cold, and clammy. Her sheets were drenched with perspiration, sweat and tears mixed together to make her sickly hot.<p>

With weak hands and eyes wide in fear, she blundered out of the small bed she'd woken up in, fingers feeling for the door and struggling to open it, finding it locked, crying out once in frustration and then sinking to the ground, whimpering helplessly through her tears.

"Esther."

The girl glanced wildly around the room, darting for a corner nearest to the door, her heart beating so fast she could've died.

"Are you alright, Esther?" a kind voice asked again.

_He murdered Stella, the one who truly learned to understand you. You'll be next if you don't submit to his wicked whims_, a cool male voice told her in her mind, she finding comfort only in it.

The fire in the small stove flared to life, illuminating the face of the man she was now utterly terrified of.

Scenes of every moment of the battle played through Stella's, _your sister's_, perspective, making her heart beat dangerously fast.

His peaceful and utterly tired face sharpened into one of utmost concern, features creased with extreme worry, once he lay eyes on her.

"Esther, please, calm down! I'm here! There's nothing to be afraid of!" Abel placated, rushing to her, only to have the girl shrink back into the corner in terror.

"Please, stay away!" Esther sobbed, a flash of memory of the Crusnik's vicious snarl racing through her mind.

He cornered her, and she relived Stella's last moments of those wings caging the woman, the Crusnik's face leering in closer as it began to feed.

"Please, no! NO!" she shrieked, cowering in a tight ball that he closed in on her.

He grabbed her in his arms, the girl beating against him, caterwauling and screaming bloody murder.

Abel panicked, stood, and held her tightly in his arms, dragging her before the hearth.

Esther screamed and flailed, it being completely useless in the arms of _a murderous and bloodthirsty Crusnik._

"Esther, you're safe now! I'll protect you, so please, stop...!" Abel pleaded, panic rising within him at Esther's terrified behavior.

The world seemed to slow and her thrashing stopped. Abel's lips suddenly kissed hers, and with each breath he deepened it, arms coiled tightly around her in an inescapable vice.

For several seconds this continued, until Esther stopped her resistance.

Abel had to bend down deeply to leverage the force he needed, due to her shorter stature, and yet Esther's trembling hands curled around the log poker sitting in the open maw of the stove. Her knuckles blanched as she held it high, then slashing it viciously against his neck, making the priest reel back in pain, crying out in his agony.

He withered to the ground, a hand outstretched to Esther for help, watching with blurring eyes as Esther grabbed all of her things, used her gun to blast open the door and race into the blind night to make her escape.

Abel doubled over in pain and grief, and he curled into himself, wailing and sobbing loudly, mourning the loss of his dearest love to the mind tricks and clutches of his detestable brother.

"ESTHER!" one mournful howl screamed into the night, the girl charging through its blindness on a stolen horse, never even daring to look back.

* * *

><p>Last Thoughts: Holy Crap! Wow, this chapter turned out to be more angsty then I thought it would. It seemed like it would happen eventually, though. You have to feel awful for Abel...poor guy. He fought his heart out for Esther, only to have her do a 180 and join his brother's side. So, now you know what the rest of the plot will be: getting Esther back and fighting Cain.<p>

What Stella is, as mentioned above, is Cain's Crusnik's Shadow. Now, before you Cain fans get pissed at any OC/CanonChara pairing, trust me: there is literally no love. She was just Cain's tool to begin with, and she had a limited aim: to turn Esther against the Vatican and deeply brainwash her. Although she died, Cain is now able to change the course of Esther's thoughts to his whims, and make him seem like her saving grace (ala the chapter title). Of course, this is a part of his plan as head of the Rosennkreuz Orden to create more hatred between the Methuselah and Terrans, which is already pretty bad in canon to begin with. So, with Abel without the only candidate to become his Crusnik's Shadow, he will die in a few months if he doesn't pass on his seed; and with him out of the way, Cain will be able to possibly take over the world and subjugate the Terrans and all that jazz. So, in the forthcoming chapters, Abel will fight his way through his brother's forces to eventually get Esther back as well as discovering more info into the experiments that the Orden have been performing on both races of people.

Of course, this will probably result in a longfic, but hopefully it'll be enough to keep to keep ya'll interested~

As I said, I'll post more information as it comes in coming chapters if they aren't already mentioned in the exposition/context.

Translations:

"Su compañero es muy precioso, si se me permite decirlo." - Your companion is very beautiful, if you don't mind me saying.

"Esto me recuerda todos los días, señor. Yo sería un hombre feliz, aunque yo la vi una vez..." - I'm reminded of that fact every day, sir. I'd be a blessed man even if I saw her only once...

Please critique me if there's anything you don't like! Reviews really help me get better!

(The song that really defines this chappie is THE INVISIBLE WALL by the GazettE that I think really expresses Abel's feelings near the end of the chapter.)

See you in the next chappie~

~Peace, G.


	3. The Beauty of Betrayal

As Is

_The Beauty Of Betrayal_

(Warnings: A bit of icky Die/Est, a minor battle, a depressingly cute Abel, and a plan in action)

* * *

><p>Esther rode the horse as hard as she could, the steed soon becoming winded upon arriving upon the next, extremely similar town.<p>

The night was long and deep, and it felt comforting to her. Diamond fragments of the stars glistened beautifully in the broad tapestry of the night, crowned by the eternally luminous moon at its zenith. Rays of moonlight bathed the world in an eerie and hauntingly gorgeous light, the midnight day unraveling its wonders for her.

She released the horse she'd stolen in a nearby pasture, the winded creature nuzzling the girl in her distress. She untacked it in tears, then hugging its face to her chest.

_There's someone here waiting for you._

Esther trembled slightly, but not out of fear for the voice.

"Is it the Crusnik murderer?" she whispered in a haunted low, hiding at the flank of the roan horse.

_No, it is a dear friend who has been longing to see you._

Suddenly, two arms encircled here from behind, and she froze.

"It's been too long, Esther..." that warm voice greeted, caressing her with nostalgia.

Esther whirled around, finding herself face to face with her dear, childhood friend.

"Dietrich!" she cried, hugging her friend jubilantly. Her completely distorted mind presented her with new memories, of Dietrich sharing in her newfound struggle as another one of Abel's victims.

"I can't believe that you escaped that monster. You're so brave, Esther," he praised, holding her close. Esther looked deeply into his eyes, then resting her head against his chest.

"How long has it been since the Vatican pitted me against you?" she whispered, her breathing softened and her fears put to rest in the arms _of the one you truly love._

"Too long. Now, come, we'll stay the night here and then we'll go to brother Cain. He's waiting for you, Esther, in Madrid," Dietrich explained, leading her, their hands clasped tightly together.

Esther stopped suddenly, gazing at him pleadingly. "But what if comes here, looking for me. He'll kill me, I know it," her voice trembled. "Dietrich, he killed Stella! I'm so afraid of what that Crusnik will do to us if he finds out where we are."

Dietrich gathered her in his arms. "Let brother Cain take care of that vile Crusnik. They're brothers, but brother Cain is stronger. He'll protect us. All you and I have to do is return to the Vatican and destroy them from within."

Esther pulled away slightly. "Destroy the Vatican? How?"

"You're the Lady-Saint, Esther. Come, let's return to our room. I'll explain it there."

Dietrich led her through the town, almost identical to the last, although it was larger and slightly more spacious. The moon lit their way as he brought her before a house, rattling open the lock with a large key, swinging the door open and letting Esther enter first.

Inside was quaint yet spacious, with floors of aged wood and walls of freshly lacquered panels, creating an extremely welcoming atmosphere. There were two beds covered with beautiful quilts, side-by-side with a nightstand positioned between them, stationed at the far end. In the middle sat two rocking chairs on a Persian rug, placed before a welcoming hearth with a fire quietly blazing, the mantle piece made of naturally placed stones. In the corner closest to the door was a rustic kitchenette, a tea kettle whistling hotly and puffing spurts of steam. A few framed paintings of the Sorian countryside graced the walls as a final touch.

"It's so cute," Esther breathed, clasping her hands together. She bounded over to a bed and flopped on it, sighing as she sank deeply into its comfort.

"I thought you might like this. See? Brother Cain cares more for you then that dastardly Vatican ever will. And when we meet him in person, you'll find yourself living more comfortably then this." Dietrich came to her side, sitting next to her on the bed.

Esther shook her head. "I don't care how comfortably I live. As long as we can be part of the Methuselah's redemption, I'll be happy no matter what circumstances I'd be in. Saving them is all that I live for now."

Dietrich closed in on her, she lying against the bed as he hovered over her on all fours. He sank down, kissing her cheek once. She smiled, and he did in turn.

Just as quietly as it happened, he was off the bed, heading over to the kitchenette and pouring the hot water over two mugs with tea bags inside. He placed the plates over the mouths of the mugs with a slight clatter before sitting on her bed once more.

"You must be wondering how we're going to go about this, isn't that right?" he asked, stroking a lock of hair away from her face as she sat up, tucking her legs off to the side.

"Well, yeah. The Vatican is too powerful for their own good and they've brainwashed the mind of every person that calls themselves Catholic." Her brows furrowed together in consternation, thinking of AX and the Inquisition, two very powerful branches of the Vatican that weren't even the full brunt of its power.

"I'll tell you as soon as you change your clothing. You must be cold in that. I'll get us some dinner while you do, alright? I won't be long," he promised, kissing her brow before hopping off the bed and exiting the room as quietly as a ghost. She realized that she was still wearing the skimpy dress that Stella had given her hours ago.

With no dresser in sight, her eyes rested upon the sudden appearance of clothing at the foot of her bed. It consisted of a one-piece jumper that zipped up from the abdomen, a white shirt to wear under it, and comfortable looking undergarments. Quickly she pulled on the bra and underwear, then the shirt, and finally the jumper that she zipped up to just below her bosom. A wandering eye caught sight of a pair of combat boots and her gun tucked away in a holster that she could sling around her back.

Esther realized with a clenched heart that this outfit was almost exactly identical to the one she wore to infiltrate the Archbishop's residence with Sherah... Her eyes sank closed and she took in several deep breaths, deciding not to mourn for her anymore.

"Don't worry, Sherah. I'll avenge you and your people who have been wronged by the Terrans for so long now," Esther vowed, throwing her head back and sighing.

The sound of the door opening and closing quickly alarmed Esther, but she stilled her beating heart when it turned out to simply be Dietrich with a bag of fresh fruits and vegetables.

"No meat?" she inquired, he placing the foods on a counter.

"Brother Cain says we need to learn how to shun the foods the Terrans consume. We'll be Methuselah after we complete our mission, and so we need to prepare ourselves," Dietrich explained, tossing her a ripened, crimson apple.

Esther nodded and bit into it, jumping off the bed and slumping into a nearby rocking chair. She stared into the flames, her mind a turmoil of thoughts as she contemplated the future to come.

* * *

><p>Abel's fingers clenched into a fist as he forced himself to stand, waves of pain radiating throughout his body. Quickly, his regeneration powers healed the open wound at his neck, but an ugly bruise scarred the skin.<p>

"Esther," he moaned, his eyes blearily fixated on the open door, moonlight pouring into the room empty of everyone except for himself.

He hugged himself, fingers digging into his arms. "Esther, where are you?" he pitifully asked the emptiness, holding air he wished Esther would fill.

From the depths of a cassock pocket, his phone began to trill loudly. He stared at it numbly before weakly fumbling for it.

Slumping into the chair, he mashed a finger to the translucent screen.

"_Father, what happened? We've been trying to get a hold you for days! First, your flight ended in disaster, and now I'm hearing reports of a devastating battle in the nearby area! Tell me exactly what's been going on!_" Caterina's stern voice demanded, nearly breaking into panic.

"She's gone."

"_What? Who is gone?_"

"Cain's Shadow came, and she turned Esther against us. Esther is on their side now, and she ran away just a few moments ago. Her mind has been so heavily poisoned that she now sees us as enemies," Abel replied, his voice dulled and hoarse.

"_This bad, Nightroad. This is very, very bad. Not only is she the Lady-Saint, but she may be the key to your prolonged survival. Let me take a memory scan of the last twenty four hours_." Abel flinched as a faint charge ricocheted through his mind, but it was over not a second later.

"_I'm going to let this translate into the decoder and I'll review it. In the meantime, go and find her Abel. Everything may fall to ruin if we can't take her back,_" Caterina's voice slightly quavered, the normally strong woman taking in a shaky breath.

With a sharp click, the call ended and Abel's arm dropped.

_What are you still doing here?_

"What do you want?" Abel hissed, his head bowed.

_You told me you would devote yourself for all eternity to her. Is your love for her truly such a sham? You used to be so strong, Abel! But now, that whelp is making you weak. You know just as well as I that you can't simply relinquish that child to Cain._

"You don't think I'm not aware of this?" Abel retorted, starting to feel enraged.

_If you were well aware, you wouldn't be sulking here. Go after her. Use force if you must. I am waiting, if you so wish to use me, Crusnik._

* * *

><p>"Are you feeling alright, Esther?"<p>

She raised her head after listlessly staring at the spent apple core.

"I guess I'm just a little out of it," she replied, smiling uncertainly.

Dietrich nodded once, then resumed describing the plan given to him by _your dear, older brother._

"What will happen is that I want us to fight the Crusnik as soon as we can. Before the battle, I'm going to inject you with an anesthetic so you'll go into a comatose state for a day or two, and it should trigger itself after half an hour, which should give you enough time to return to the Vatican and wake up there as well. Once you do, act as if nothing happened, and that any mind control wore off. In the meantime, as far as the Crusnik is concerned, you're my hostage. After the Crusnik or someone else returns you to Vatican and you recover, I will disguise myself as your new personal assistant, and from there brother Cain will give us instructions on what to do."

Esther swallowed. "But, if that's the case, then I'll be in his clutches for a day or more," she shivered, letting Dietrich hold her.

"Once we follow through with this plan, brother Cain will fight and defeat that murderer and together, we'll become part of a new era. Think of it, Esther: a world where Methuselah reign supreme. Your God created us for a reason, Esther. The Methuselah are masters of the humans, just as the humans were made to be masters of the plants and animals. We're carrying out God's work, Esther. The Vatican is a sinful, despicable cult that serves the devil. Is it any wonder that brother Cain's wings are white in his Crusnik form while that murderer's are black? It's as simple as good and evil, Esther," Dietrich said, his words like a wisp of warm air in the frigid reality of the world.

"I'm not sure what will come next, but you know...we're on the true side of God. Let's destroy those heretics," Esther said dreamily, leaning against Dietrich's shoulder.

Both became silent as a deathly chill descended upon the room, making Esther perceptibly shiver.

"Are you ready?" Dietrich whispered, the sting of a syringe piercing the skin on Esther's leg as he gave her the dosage of the promised anesthetic.

Esther wiped away the trace of blood, her eyes fixed on the door, feeling a malevolent presence beyond it. "As I'll ever be," she murmured back.

Both sprung from the bed in a haste, Esther poised with her pistol and Dietrich unsheathed two wicked looking Zweihanders from their sheaths recently fastened around his waist. He tossed her an additional revolver, which she caught deftly.

Esther trembled as she felt the waves of power slowly overtake the room. She hid behind Dietrich who gladly accommodated her.

Loud gunshots sounded from the outside as the lock became loosened once, then twice, finally shattering and blasting to pieces on the floor. It fell down noisily, and Abel stepped over the fallen door, it cracking and splintering under his weight.

Esther's breath hitched in her throat and she unlatched the safety of both of her guns, her heart pounding.

Abel swept his eyes over the room, the moonlight glinting hauntingly off his glasses. He trained them on Esther, and they instantly lost their predatory sheen, instead becoming heartrendingly sad and mournful.

"Esther," he said once, a weak smile tugging at his lips. He took a step forward while Esther took a step back.

Another step. "I'm sorry for scaring you, Esther. You were just frightened, right? I'm here. I'm not going to transform, so please, come to me," he begged, trying to maintain his composure.

Esther just locked eyes with him, hers flaring with the kind of fear a cornered animal displayed before attacking out of self-defense.

Abel extended a hand towards her, looking absolutely desperate, dropping to his knees. "Esther, I'm here, and I'll protect you! He's the enemy, and now he's holding you hostage, isn't he? You don't have to be afraid anymore, see? I'll take care of everything and keep you safe," his voice cracked, his eyes on the verge of tears.

Two loud gunshots rang out, and Abel fell to the floor, crying out.

Esther stood before Dietrich, arms trembling and guns smoking. "I will do no such thing, you monster!" she screamed, skirting around him at a dead run and rushing through the opening.

Abel's head weakly rose. "Esther!"

Dietrich stopped before the door, smirking smugly at Abel, hot on the heels of Esther as both sprinted away into the night.

A spent bullet dropped to the ground, and then another. Abel stood up, the skin on his chest churning sickeningly as the wounds quickly healed.

"Alright, I see how it is." He snapped in a new magazine of bullets. "You think you can get away from me, Esther?"

"You're wrong."

* * *

><p>"Incoming!" Dietrich cried, deflecting a hail of bullets aimed at him.<p>

Esther's eyes widened as she saw Abel bound from roof to roof, and when they ran past the pastures, he leapt off the last roof and landed squarely in front of Esther.

She shrieked and shot blindly ahead, only to have Abel avoid it perfectly. He materialized behind her, twisting her arms and forcing her to drop the guns.

As she cried out in agony, Abel whispered in her ear, "I don't want to do this to you Esther," while smiling emotionlessly.

Dietrich swung his swords at the priest, forcing Abel to release her at the cost of possibly harming her.

Esther collapsed to the ground, her arms throbbing in pain. Dietrich crouched to her side, making it look like he was checking over her arms.

"Only a few more minutes. Try to fight as close to him as possible. It's for brother Cain. Think only of the plan," he instructed, heightening the dosage, reducing the amount of time she'd have to be conscious.

"Right," Esther nodded, weakly standing as Dietrich handed her one of his blades. She took the alien weapon, poised and redoubling her efforts for battle.

She knew full well that Dietrich was much stronger, and could possibly take on Abel single-handedly and give him a hard time. But, for the sake of the plan, both had to lessen their battle prowess considerably.

Esther charged towards Abel, slashing the sword down and only to catch it on the trigger guard of the priest's gun.

Abel gazed at her with mournful eyes, barely expending much strength as he kept their weapons at a draw.

"Esther, please, come to your senses," he begged. From behind, Dietrich cried out before hacking downwards, Abel catching it in his free hand with inhuman ease.

Esther's expression remained fierce, but then panicked as the anesthetic began taking effect. She staggered backwards, dropping the sword and shaking her head desperately, feigning a desperate struggle to remain conscious.

She took a few steps back, and finally, her body gave way, plummeting to the Earth.

"Esther!" Abel cried, racing towards her and catching her in his arms. By the time he did, she was completely unconscious.

Abel whipped his head around, remembering Dietrich. However, the boy was nowhere in sight.

He didn't care. All that mattered was Esther, who was safe in his arms.

Abel sank to the earth on his knees, cradling the girl endearingly close to his chest.

"I'm never going to let you out of my sight," he vowed, his eyes lovingly tender as he stroked over the curve her high cheekbones, gazing at her beautiful face that reflected the light of the calming moon.

Then, with the moon as his witness, Abel unhesitatingly gave her a long, slow, tender kiss as a seal to his promise.

* * *

><p>About three days later, a bevy of nurses, nuns, and concerned well-wishers clamored around the Lady-Saint's hospital door, bulbous plumes of flowers spraying from the arms of several male admirers, much to the chagrin of a meek priest timidly seeking passage through the meshing sea of people.<p>

"Excuse me," came the recognizable, commanding voice of Lady Caterina.

Everyone immediately silenced themselves, forming to neat lines of bowed heads as Caterina walked expectantly through. She glanced back at Abel, gesturing for him to follow her.

The door slid shut, Abel gasping as his hair was caught in it. He tugged on it, gnawing his lip in consternation of his efforts. It finally sprang free, the force of its release sending him sprawling to the ground.

Caterina shot him a crippling glare, and the priest popped to his feet, bowing his head with his eyes glancing nervously at the powerful woman like a kicked puppy.

The nurse at the girl's side removed an IV from Esther's arm, then leaving the room at Caterina's behest.

Esther's eyes crinkled together, and she blinked owlishly once, sleepily looking around the room.

"It's good to have you back," Caterina smiled warmly, sitting on the girl's bedside and patting her arm.

"ESTHER!" Abel squealed, catapulting himself on the bed, and engulfing her in a bear hug, nuzzling her cheek like a kitten would its master.

"Urmph—! Father—!" Esther struggled, finally shoving the older man off the bed, then popping up by her side, a metaphorical tail wagging happily.

"Oh, Lady Caterina! What happened? I was on my way to serve morning mass, but then everything just went black," Esther said, dazedly holding a hand to her head.

Caterina's brows lightly knit together. "You mean you don't remember this past week at all?" she asked dubiously.

Esther looked concerned. "Week? Wow, I was out for that long?" she asked in disbelief, pressing her hands to her temples.

"We were on a mission, Esther, in Spain for about three days. You mean you don't remember that at all?" the priest asked, a troubled look taking to his face.

"Abel, we tried taking a memory scan of the past week, and all we got were the moments leading up to Esther serving mass. Everything else is a complete and utter blank," Caterina explained, gazing at Esther, who looked utterly lost and confused.

A knock sounded on the door, and it instantly slid open, revealing a good-looking young man slightly older than Esther. His mass of shoulder-length, curly hair was pulled back by a leather string, and he was sharply dressed in trousers and a casual dress shirt with a long ribbon tied at the collar by Esther's personal signet.

"Ah, Lady Esther. I'm pleased to finally meet you. Are you well enough to advance today's schedule?" he asked, neatly bowing from his waist.

_Repeat what I say to you, dear. The boy is someone close to you..._

Abel rose protectively before Esther, glaring daggers at the boy. "Who are you?" he asked venomously. Caterina met the boy's gaze with suspicion.

"Father, Lady Caterina, please calm down! His name is George von Strausen and I interviewed him personally a week before I became unconscious. He's my new assistant and body guard," Esther explained, smiling to the boy knowingly for a moment behind Abel and Caterina's backs.

Both looked at her, her smile dropping into a look of embarrassment.

Abel's face looked hurt. "You mean, you don't need me to help you anymore?"

Esther's eyes lowered, then she brightened and smiled cheerfully. "Nope. Besides, Father, as a member of AX you should focus on your own duties instead of on me. It would be inappropriate for you to be at my beck and call. I don't need you anymore," Esther said, her words having jabbing undertones, stabbing Abel with each and every word.

"It's no problem at all," Lady Caterina reasoned. "He can be with you when he's not on a mission."

"No, Lady Caterina, it's about time I assumed responsibility for myself as the Lady Saint. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to change and then return to my office and discuss my upcoming schedule with George," Esther dismissed, taking the fresh, crisply pressed habit from George. "Thank you very much for your concern, Lady Caterina, Father. I really appreciate it."

Lady Caterina rose. "I'm glad that you're feeling well. I have things of my own to do. Perhaps we'll meet again soon," the cardinal promised, taking her leave.

"I'll wait for you outside, Lady Esther," George said, bowing neatly and temporarily leaving the room, the door sliding shut behind them both.

Abel was the only one left. Esther rose to stand, but vertigo overtook her and she lost her balance.

"Esther!" The priest caught her around her waist with both arms from behind, causing Esther's skin to prickle.

"You can let me go, Father," Esther commanded dangerously, trying to wedge her way out of Abel's arms.

"Esther, you honestly don't remember anything?" Abel asked softly, tightening his hold around her, his face touching her shoulder as he stooped down.

"I remember everything, you murderer, you traitor! My brother and sister told me all that I need to know! Now, release me at once," Esther hissed, finally wrenching herself free.

Abel looked at her, bewilderment written across his face."Esther, he's controlling your mind! Please, let me help you! ...Return to me..." the priest sorrowfully begged, his arms weakly opened.

"Leave, you lecherous glutton! Never let me see you again!" she spat, defensively crouching as if readying a strike against the one _who has done nothing but wrong you._

Her eyes flamed with rage, hands ready to grab anything necessary to chase him from the room.

He lowered his head, bangs shading his eyes and light glinting off of his glasses. "Alright, I see how it is." He raised it again, his eyes brimming with tears and mouth pulled down into a frown. "We're enemies from now on, is that right? Well, no matter how much you wish to fight against me, I will only fight to get you back on my side."

Abel sniffed, forcing himself into a deadly seriousness. "Mark my words: I will do anything within my power to get you back. Cain will lose you, and you will return to my side," he growled, striking her with fury in his eyes.

"I'd like to see you try, monster!" Esther hissed back, hand fingering the neck of a nearby vase.

Abel only smiled once, sadly, and under this breath he muttered three words that she couldn't hear before he turned around and left.

She didn't care. It was now clear to that imbecile that they were enemies, and that's all that mattered.

* * *

><p>As soon as she'd changed and left the hospital room, she wandered through a maze of hallways to find her office.<p>

Opening the door, she hugged the man waiting inside, burying her face into his strong back.

"Dietrich," she sighed, feeling his hands touch hers.

"Don't you mean George?" the older boy chuckled, his face reverting into his true form.

"Are you alright?" he added quietly, turning around to embrace her.

"The Crusnik is persistent. He knows his place now, though. We may have trouble from him, but brother Cain will defeat him soon enough," Esther said, "and then we can avenge sister Stella."

"You know of the plan now, right?" Dietrich asked, releasing her.

"Yes. We're going to Madrid to conduct a service in honor of those who died from the recent attacks. From Hispania, we'll head to the coast where allies will be waiting, and then we'll rouse up the Empire's Methuselah and guide them to the light of truth," Esther ascertained. "And my loss from the Vatican will create turmoil, and fan the flames of war."

"That's right. And brother Cain will be with us. We'll be in the final stages until the advent of a new World War spearheaded by him that will take place, and the reign of the Terrans will end forever," Dietrich smiled, standing before a window that illuminated his silhouette in a dazzling display of luminescence that made him look like an absolute angel.

"And then, I'll finally be able to repent for my sins against them," Esther sighed quietly, thinking back when she used to despise the very people that she now loved.

"Your participation is the biggest coup in history is repentance enough. Once we join brother Cain's side, we'll be changed, Esther, for the better."

"I can't wait." Esther sighed as she was gathered into Dietrich's arms, their forms consumed in a sudden burst of light.

* * *

><p>"You're absolutely certain of this?" Caterina demanded, chin resting on interwoven fingers.<p>

Abel stood before her desk, his head bowed. "She's being controlled by Cain. No... Every memory, every thought, has been changed to fit his design. She's in league with Cain now, and Dietrich was with her when I interceded them in Soria. I also have come to believe that her new assistant, George, is in actually Dietrich in disguise. Dietrich once manipulated Radu, the Baron of Luxor, and also seems to have the gift of body manipulation."

"When I did a memory scan of her mind, I thought that it was odd that I couldn't see into the time that she was with you. The memory scanner is able to see into the participant's past, even if they've suffered from amnesia, no matter what. The only way it'd be possible for someone's memories to be blocked the way hers are would to be if there was some kind of deliberate interference," Caterina theorized, rubbing her temples.

Abel slammed his hands on the table. "Lady Caterina, please, is there any way to break his hold on her?" he pleaded, locking gazes with her, searching for an answer.

She turned away, unable to match gazes with Abel's intensity. "The only way that would be possible is if the one manipulating her was killed, or if his hold on her was broken. Your brother is extremely powerful, Abel. It will take someone as strong as him if not stronger, and I'm sorry to say that you're not at that level..."

Abel bowed over, clutching his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do, Caterina. I just can't lose her. Without her, I'm only set to die, and that time is upon me... I couldn't live without her, even if I tried!" He banged a fist on her desk, unsettling a stack of paperwork that fluttered helplessly to the ground like autumn leaves.

"Under normal circumstances, I would launch an investigation and bring them both into custody. However, I'm afraid that I'm a well-known sympathizer of the Methuselah. If I went through with this, there would be massive repercussions within the Vatican, and I would land into very dire straits. Even if my brother approved, this would mean disillusionment among followers and we could lose support. Vying for power is never unknown, and he could easily be replaced with someone who would be manipulated. And accusing the Lady-Saint of all people would cause further chaos. At this point, there's absolutely nothing that I can do. It seems that we may have underestimated Cain this time around."

Abel rose, ready to stalk out of the room. "Fine, I'll act on my own."

Caterina shot up from her desk. "Abel! Wait!"

He stopped, not even glancing over his shoulder.

"By order of Cardinal Caterina Sforza, I hereby grant you the ability to act in my name and stop any threat imminent upon his Holiness Pope Alessandro XVIII and those within the domain of the Vatican," Caterina formally ordered, extending her hand in consent.

"There's nothing else I can do, Abel. Until Cain makes an attack against us, my hands are tied," she said quietly, lowering back down into her seat.

"Thank you," Abel replied softly, heading out the door in silence.

* * *

><p>Last thoughts: Hot damn, things are really heating up, aren't they? I still feel really bad for Abel...poor guy is just getting kicked around left and right...<p>

Alright, so as it's now apparent, this is the latest scheme in the Orden's master plan to take over the world and put humans where they belong, as they so believe. So, in the upcoming chapter, Esther and Dietrich are heading to Madrid, Spain as a farce in order to finally meet up with Cain and from there go to the New Human Empire and basically raise hell. Because of Stella's bewitchment on Esther's mind, Cain is able to intercede in her thoughts and change them, which is why parts of them are italicized _like this_. In doing so, he gains not only control over her thoughts, but also influence over her actions.

I'm not sure how long this story will last, but I imagine that it may not be longer then ten chapters, seeing that already in chapter three the pace is moving fairly quickly. It feels appropriate, though, since I noticed that the pacing of the manga and anime are pretty similar in the respect that they just get to the point with everything. Well, that and I write pretty long chapters all at once, so...

To be honest, I just can't seem to stop writing this. I've got so many ideas that it feels like I may miss important details if I wait to write these. I really hope that you're enjoying this story so far, even if it's just a little.

Let's meet again in the nest chapter~!

~Peace, G.


	4. War Knows No Peace

As Is

_War Knows No Peace_

(Warnings: Another gory battle, a massive bloodbath, some Est/Die interaction, an explosion)

* * *

><p>"Today, I've come into the awareness of these attacks on the people of Spain. Tragedies such as these are never easy to surmount, and it's always harder still to forgive those who find solace in criminal activities. In our world, it's too easy to forget the things we wish to overlook, the things we wish weren't true. With every death brings with it the temptation of sin, of letting down our guard to allow the ministrations of the devil to work through and against our neighbor. I've often wished for vengeance against those who killed the family I never knew, and I've wished for death on those who took the life of someone dear to me. Everyone, revenge is lonely. When we stand alone, we are weak. When we believe that there is nothing that longs to protect us, the desire for revenge consumes all. In grave times such as these, we must unite as children of God and throw down our hatred and judgment to Him. For God is the only one who can judge human hearts and decide where fate should take them. God, our Creator, is the one we must surrender ourselves to and believe in. Even though the road ahead will be painful, we must rest assured in the arms of God and remember that our foes have a truly fearsome enemy in the Lord! Faith in God is deadly to those who walk with deceit and murder! Together, in God, we are united and strong and nothing will destroy our faith and might! Amen," Esther concluded resoundingly from the podium she stood at, overlooking a frenzied, cheering sea of faces that were reveling in her words.<p>

The former bull-fighting stadium was a testament to a broken and forgotten past, now a place of community for the denizens of Madrid who had gathered by the thousands today to hear her words of consolation and strength in light of the recent events.

As she descended the darkened and narrow levels of the ring, several well-wishers lauded her for her speech, and she gladly accepted their praise.

Esther found her designated room, a small place barely the size of a shed. For a girl of the cloth, however, she was in no place to complain. Besides, _the Vatican will fall soon enough to us._

Dietrich closed the door after she entered, the girl sinking into a chase lounge, sighing tiredly.

"That was quite a masterful speech," Dietrich praised, disguised as George, handing her a glass of cool water.

She gulped down a few sips. "It's amusing how that speech was directed more towards Methuselah than Terrans."

Dietrich took back the glass and set it on a nearby table. "Brother Cain will be expecting us tonight."

Esther gazed down at the habit, tugging on the split sleeves that allowed for the crepe lace below to show elegantly. "After tonight, I'm done with the Vatican. All we need is brother Cain to reveal himself to the Empire, and he'll have an army that will easily crush the humans. It almost seems like our efforts are merely to instill within us a sense of worth, wouldn't you say, Dietrich?"

"Brother Cain is powerful, but we play a crucial part in crippling the Vatican. Only he knows why it's necessary," Dietrich ruminated, taking a place next to Esther and circling an arm around the back of the lounge.

"Have you seen the Crusnik around at all, Dietrich? Sometimes I have this ominous feeling of being watched," Esther confessed, pulling her knees to her chin and wrapping her arms around them.

"I have, Esther, but it's inevitable. He's our enemy now, and he'll do all he can for his masters to sabotage our just mission," Dietrich said, turning his head towards the troubled girl.

"I think there's something wrong with me, Dietrich. Whenever I see him, I know that he's the enemy but...something deep down is thrashing against me, begging me to stop. At night, I wake up crying for no discernible reason. I know that I have dreams about him, but I can never remember what they're about. I feel so guilty and conflicted when I think about him, but I can't remember for the life of me why I feel this way." Esther face became buried within her knees, her mind a conflict of emotion that was groundless and wandering.

"It's merely a remnant of your past. You feel conflicted because brother Cain is telling you the truth, and yet your past self feels regret at defying the lies you once saw as truth. The Crusnik is a manifestation of your past feelings for the Vatican and that is all. Once you become Methuselah, you'll forget your past except for the reality brother Cain has granted to you. Don't worry, Esther: you'll be free of your mortal pains soon enough," Dietrich reassured, standing, his face morphing into his false form.

Esther looked up shyly, gazing at him with innocent eyes. He extended a hand and she took it, both ready to make their final, last escape.

* * *

><p>Abel had watched the entirety of Esther's moving speech, almost forgetting that she was his enemy and not the inspirational Lady-Saint that many had come to rely on as of late.<p>

Only a few weeks before, she'd been the woman he would give his life to at a moment's notice. It was true that the times they had seen each other were few and far between, but absence often makes the heart grow fonder. And her absence right now was enough to make him go absolutely livid with rage and instantly cut down any opponent in his path. Yet, common sense dictated that such rash actions would only jeopardize his chances of getting her back.

In the harsh decadence of sunlight, he watched as Esther returned to the podium set up high aloft, Dietrich at her side, the light making her appear as an angel of pure white floating above these mortal men. Her hair was tugged delicately by wisps of wind, a smile befitting her face before she began the chants in Latin for the memorial service.

Abel clutched his heart, knowing with dread that his body was slowly deteriorating. Already, it had been two weeks since Esther's complete change of heart, and under Caterina's jurisdiction to act independently, he'd chartered a flight to Spain where for the past few weeks he'd wandered throughout Soria and greater Madrid, clashing with renegade Methuselah and Terrans alike, destroying many factions of the terrorists' activities and discovering the whereabouts of Cain at long last.

And yet, here he was, wasting time as he watched Esther make her last devotions to the Vatican. Several assaults upon Methuselah in Cain's charge had given him pieces of a much broader plan, and now he had much of it figured out.

But because of the degradation of his body, he'd ended those Methuselah's lives without question, sating the hunger of his constantly ravishing appetite for an extremely small frame of time. Even now, his body felt weak and detached, and he knew that the evening would be spent hunting upon Methuselah.

There was a hunger much more urgent within his psyche. His eyes flew to Esther's deceptively benevolent form, truly the figure of holiness as her words charmed and healed the broken hearts of those listening. Every pair of eyes was transfixed, some tearing up from joy while others felt impelled to pray deeply, words chanted silently beneath their breaths as they held fast to their rosaries and small Bibles. Her voice filled him with longing, and her presence made him want her even more. Primal need urged him to simply take her from where she was, but he knew that a poisoned mind would never accept him. All she saw and wanted was Cain now.

The tolling of a far off church bell rang far and wide through the early June air, and Abel started to see Esther wishing everyone well as she finished off the service, gesturing a final Sign of the Cross as she took her leave off the stage. Abel knew that it was the time to act.

* * *

><p>"Lady Esther! If you wish to humble us with your presence, would you like to join us in the Gathering of Innocents as we bury the child victims?" asked a Spanish Father as Esther exited the maze of the bullfighting stadium, ready to dip into the car that was due to speed them to the coast.<p>

Esther gave him a small smile. "I'm so very sorry, Father, but the Lord is calling me elsewhere. I hope that the Lord blesses your service with the opening to the gates of heaven," she wished in earnest, making the Sign of the Cross before the father.

"I'm sorry that you cannot be with us. May your light shine upon whatever place you go, my Lady," the man thanked, turning to leave into the weaving sea of dispersing people.

Esther's smile dropped and she bent down into the car, Dietrich closing the door before getting into the driver's seat.

Dietrich began driving, and they pulled out to merge with the slowly moving traffic. "You sounded very genuine just now."

Esther glanced at him once, then resumed staring out into they heavy Madrid traffic. "I don't care what race they are; no child deserves to suffer, Methuselah or Terran."

Banking sharply, they narrowly avoided in run-in with a large semi, jarring Esther slightly. "Even if the children of humans turn out to be monsters?" he lightly challenged, evening the car out.

"Once brother Cain makes all things right in the world, future humans will learn of peace and their rightful place. Isn't that for certain, Dietrich?" Esther's voice lilted, her gaze sharply questioning, reflected in the mirror.

Dietrich simply creased his brows and drove on in silence.

* * *

><p>"<em>How was she behaving at the service?<em>"

Abel was perched on a lonely apartment roof, the behemoths of skyscrapers in the distance riding the wind, tendrils of rolling clouds curling and caressing their sharp and jagged edges. He glanced down again to the earth and the winding and whirling streets of Barcelona congested with traffic, tracking the movement of Esther and Dietrich on a small GPS unit, having tacked a tracking device on their vehicle hours ago. Already they were on the far reaches of Spain, having eventually ditched the car for air travel.

"It pains me to say that she was absolutely splendid. She seemed exactly like herself..." he broke off, recounting Esther's brutal treatment of him about three weeks ago. There was still a noticeable bruise to the right of his neck, and the wounds where she'd shot him still smarted painfully whenever he thought of her.

"_I see... There have been reports of child kidnappings and of the recovery of mutilated bodies in Barcelona, exactly where you are. As you said, Esther's projected arrival time until her departure to the Empire will be two days. Now, that should be an adequate window of time for you to apprehend the local syndicate and possibly retrieve for information. After you've done that, I will have Father Tres look into national databases and ascertain how they will be traveling to the Empire, and from there we'll board you passage on the same flight. If you need support, I will try to hire the help of any AX members in the area. Good luck, Father_," Caterina cut off, the dial tone droning until he pushed the 'end' key on the screen.

Pocketing it within his cassock, Abel took in a weary breath, momentarily losing his vision in the faintly glowing stars and the mixes of modern light and ancient night.

_I see that it's time for the hunt, isn't it? Hurry! I'm getting very thirsty, Crusnik..._

Abel sighed and swept a few gestures across his navigator, pulling up a map that had a brightly blinking light that was the confirmed den of the criminals.

"How long do we have to live?" he asked tonelessly, sounding incredibly weary and worn.

_Little more than a month_, his inner voice hissed, punctuated by fear, _so long as you don't engage in severe battles._

"I promised that I would get her back. That's a promise I never intend to break."

Abel adroitly leapt to the ground, sandwiched between two closely knit buildings, watching the intense activity of the cheerfully lit boulevard beyond with something akin to loneliness.

He looked down for a moment, then back up and suddenly faced with the smiling and demure figure of Esther waiting for him at the mouth of the alley. She then broke into a run, and Abel soon took off after her.

"Esther, wait!" he cried, barreling into a crowd of shoppers. He unapologetically surged through the crowd, a party of cursing and indignant people in his wake that he paid no mind to.

The tantalizing young girl ghosted effortlessly through the crowd, dancing and weaving through with an unparalleled grace. Abel shouted after her, having no effect on the slim form that breezed on through while he pushed and shoved desperately.

She suddenly banked a sharp left, right into the path of traffic.

Abel mindlessly followed her into the fray of speeding cars, watching as she miraculously avoided being narrowly hit by car after car. "Esther!" he called again, only to be swallowed by the din of traffic.

He adroitly jumped over incoming cars, receiving shouts from the drivers, ignoring them, every one of his senses devoted entirely to Esther.

The blaring of a monstrous semi truck jarred him back to reality, and he yelped as he made a running leap to just barely avoid the semi as it sped past. Waiting for him at the other side of the street was a crowd of murmuring people, a certain habit-clad young lady turning towards him and smiled enticingly.

"Please, wait!" he tried again, his mind becoming delirious from the nearly endless chase.

Rain began to indiscriminately pelt him, and he had to stop to catch his breath. Glancing to his left, between another pair of buildings he saw Esther waiting by a set of stairs that led down into the basement of one of the buildings.

He walked towards it, only to have Esther disappear down the stairs.

Abel sprinted after her, coming to the landing and finding that no young nun was in sight, and the door had obviously never been opened.

"H-How did s-she...?" He scrambled for his navigator, the screen blinking at his exact location, the known place of the criminal syndicate. The priest swallowed down the thick lump forming in his throat.

_That wasn't really her, Abel. You must have been hallucinating._

Abel began to shiver, then breaking out in insane laughter.

He pushed back his bangs with a gloved hand, shakily sobering. "Of course! I'm set to die in a month! I suppose that this happens to those on the verge of death," his voice trembled, brows pushing upwards with disbelief.

The man straightened, hugging himself. "After the two day flight there, I will only have a month to live. I'll be here for two days as well. Four days without her...I'll be on my own..."

_Get a hold of yourself, Crusnik! You're acting like a weak child_! the one inside him snarled.

Abel's face become deadly serious, and he adjusted his glasses slightly. "You're right. I need to make these moments count. I've spent much of my life murdering. For once, maybe I can save someone else like so many saved me...like Lilith and Esther did."

He steeled himself, heading down the narrow stair and opening the door with a creak. It swept aside a path on the dirty floor, and he crept inside.

The interior was black as pitch, with several plastic-coated obstructions blocked his way that he stepped elegantly around. The scent of iron peaked in the air, and it piqued his interest. He found within a pocket a small key chain flashlight, sweeping it around the room.

"Goodness!" he exclaimed, staggering back. Before him lay a plethora of operating tables in the room much larger than he thought, with high ceilings and rows of florescent lighting, all set in perfectly ordered rows. In the far back, a large, red mass revealed to be flayed skin, with separate piles topped to the brim with unnecessary entrails. Along all the walls were dozens of refrigerators, each labeled with specifically designated names for the different organs. On each of the tables were bodies at different stages of organ harvesting, all of them drained of blood and decapitated.

He remembered Caterina mentioning how heads had been discovered in sewers, but slashes at their ankles made it apparent that blood had been drained from the bodies in that fashion, probably to also be harvested to be included in hemoglobin tablets, a commodity in the Empire, but in this fashion it was obviously illegal.

"This is odd. The last dens I infiltrated all had bodies rather crudely cut up, and they were hung on meat racks and drained upside down..." Abel surmised, holding his chin as he closely investigated a woman's body, the smell of preservatives reeking from the corpse.

"That's because we happen to be significantly larger then the amateur factions operating inland, Father. You see, the closer we operate to the sea, the more brother Cain rewards us. It's better economically as well. We get money from the Empire for the blood tablets we produce, as well as organs to use in the medical industry, and a way to stir the flames of war. A rather neat operation, wouldn't you say?" a man's voice echoed throughout the large chamber, all lights flashing on.

Abel whirled to see a man with outrageously curly blonde hair, the lifeless blue eyes of a killer, and a mug that had seen and relished in too many deaths. He was dressed in a lab coat, trousers, and dress shirt, all of which were hideously stained red.

"What you're doing is wrong! Murdering innocent people simply should never be done!" Abel rebelled, holding fast to his gun tucked away within its hip holster.

"You see the lady next to you? Common whore," the man gestured to the right with a large cleaver. "The gent next to her? On probation after serving time in jail for twenty years for drowning his newborn kid and stabbing his wife to death. We're doing the world a favor, priest. Civil service and nationwide cleansing. Karma's a bitch, eh?"

"No human should ever have the excuse to take lives," Abel defended, closing in on the trigger, ready to whip it out and cripple him with a shot to the knee.

"You look like a healthy chap. Boys getting hungry after working for so long, ain't that right?" the man said with a casual, tired sound to his voice.

Abel yelped as two Methuselah apprehended him, viciously twisting his arms around and binding them fast. They shoved him to the floor, corralling the priest to a nearby room.

He cried out again as he was shoved to the floor, face scraping against a crudely hewn concrete surface, the floor sloping downwards, a steady trickle of blood draining from dozens of bodies hanging upside down on meat racks. The floor was cut by streams of blood all sluicing into a drain where the draining echoed cavernously throughout the room, every inch of it plastered with caked and shining blood. The smell of iron and minerals was overwhelming and could be enough to knock any normal person out cold.

"You know, brother Cain is a pretty decent chap. Every single body here belonged to the scum of the Earth. Now, in death, they're serving a mighty right cause, wouldn't you say?"

One of the burly Methuselah keeping Abel restrained pushed his face to the side of the floor with a thick and heavy boot, making Abel grit his teeth as blood caked his hair and face. They laughed deeply to themselves, like the monsters they really were.

"Why don't we drain and stick this pig like the rest of them?" one ground out, speaking to the blond with the cleaver hefted over a shoulder.

"Why'd you want to do that?" the man snorted. "Thought you wanted some blood."

"Priests like these deserve to suffer. They kill our kind brutally while peacocking around as the salvation for all life. Fits, doncha think?" the other rumbled, yanking back Abel's hair harshly.

"Do what you like as long as he's dead. Save the corpse, though. Looks like a glutton, and those types are usually healthier then your average joes. Guess the Vatican likes to feed their dogs well," the blond said tersely. "Alright, blast his brains out or whatever. I'm going to do some more harvesting, if you'll excuse me." With that, he left the room, closing a heavy steel door resoundingly.

The Methuselah began laughing darkly, licking their chops like feral dogs.

_All this blood is making you rather famished, isn't that right, Crusnik?_

"Do you have any final words, Vatican dog?" one snarled, ominously scratching a heavy knife against the gnarled concrete wall.

"I'm afraid that I'm rather hungry." Sparks of electricity licked the air, and Abel's mouth pulled back into a snarl, the tips of his fangs peaking over his lips.

"What'd you say, dog?" the other growled.

Abel's hair began to flare into the air, flicks of electricity dancing through the strands. Nails sharpened into claws, and his eyes began to glow their radiant crimson.

**Crusnik 02**

**Release of Restrictions at 10% - Confirmed**

Abel viciously whirled around, pinning the Methuselah to the ground, his hands clawing at their throats.

"Humans consume birds and cattle," his monstrously deepened voice said in a throaty growl. He slashed one throat, jaws crushing the male's neck as blood spilled into his mouth, only serving to ignite his gnawing hunger.

The Methuselah shrieked like a downed pig, soon silencing as Abel finished him off. He cast the body on the drain, it gurgling sickly as the last motions of life were made.

"Please, have mercy!" the vile criminal pleaded, eyes agape at the sight of his downed comrade.

Abel tossed his head back slightly, licking his lips and chin as all of the blood began to sate his hunger.

Wicked crimson eyes trained on the other, a grip tightening around the vampire's neck, smashing him against the wall, upsetting two bodies that fell to the ground in a bloody heap.

He grinned devilishly. "Vampires drink the blood of humans." Abel swept his gaze around the room, emphasizing his statement.

He closed in, coming to the vampire's ear. "Perhaps, maybe, _just maybe_, there's a being out there that drinks the blood of vampires." He slowly aimed for the neck, grinning heartlessly as the vampire began to scream in agony.

A sickening crunch sounded as he crushed its throat, juicy, delicious blood spilling greedily down his own.

"Oi! What the bloody—_hell_..." The blond stumbled for the right words, watching in horror as the vampire's corpse slumped to the ground.

In the blink of an eye, Abel had the man cornered against a wall, staring him down. "You spoke of my brother. Where is he?" he growled to the man, expectantly tapping the tips of his claws against the wall.

The blond suddenly thrust the cleaver downwards, it catching on Abel's shoulder.

The Crusnik slowly considered it, watching as his flesh regenerated rapidly and rejected the cleaver, it clattering to the ground.

"His location, if you please," Abel growled again, eyes rising to lock with the human's, lips rising into a snarl.

"I ain't telling you shit, monster!" the man cried out defiantly, brandishing a gun from his lab coat and shooting Abel in the eye.

Abel cried out in pain, clutching his hand to his eye as he screamed wildly like a banshee.

"Attack this _sonuvabitch_, now!" the man shouted into a small microphone tucked into his lapel. He ran like hell out of the room, again slamming the steel door behind.

Abel's eye began to heal, and he felt tremors through the earth, eyes trained on a large, massive steel door on the opposite end of the room, it sliding open with a mind-numbing screech.

All matter of glowing eyes and large, extremely distorted bodies lumbered into the room. Most were extremely thick and burly goblin-like creatures like the early vampires of legend. Their features were ape-like with strong jaws and abnormally long extremities like an orangutan, massive talons on large hands dragging to the ground. They growled nastily, saliva dripping from maws that smelled like death.

There was a count of twenty plus more waiting within, and Abel could only laugh darkly to himself. "Quite a buffet you've prepared, brother Cain."

**Crusnik 02**

**Release of Restrictions at 40% - Confirmed**

Long black wings unfurled, blocking half of the room in a cloak like night. His scythe materialized in his hands, and he scrapped its tip against the floor, fazing some of the creatures before him who growled uncertainly before the new foe.

Abel's lips curled in a ghoulish smile.

"You were all Methuselah once."

The creatures all charged at once, and Abel began his deadly offensive against them. His wings sharpened into points and cleaved many in two, his scythe downing more with its long vertebrae blade sailing through the bodies, splicing them to pieces.

Many more flooded from the bowels of the containment, spilling over the bodies already cut asunder, a bloodbath coating the room and the Crusnik with arbitrary sprays of red.

Abel cackled madly, dropping his weapon and furling his wings tightly closed, cracking the limbs in his hands. The Crusnik surged forth, clawing through bodies, deflecting blows from the many swings of the creatures, much like wrecking cranes run amok. Blood splattered his face that he eagerly licked off. When the chance arose, his wings shielded him in a sphere of protection as he clamped to the throats of a few, crunching beneath the pressure of his deceptively strong jaws, draining them of all of their life essences.

Each and every kill was like a small bite to a large meal that he needed to survive, his wings dragging to the floor as the blood absorbed into his body, becoming dry in many spots, corpses reduced to dry and crinkled husks like fish left in the sun for too long.

Abel laughed in ecstasy with each creature slain, engrossed in a wild and whirling dance of claws and raining blood, losing himself completely. Before he knew it, the last hapless beast was slain, its blood pooling to the floor in massive quantities.

His wings drooped, sighing sensually as every inch of blood entered through to his core, satiating his appetite completely. He hadn't had the pleasure of such abundant amounts since slaying the dragon Methuselah about a month before.

He opened his eyes after absorbing every last drop, cracking his neck in the deathly silent room.

"We're satisfied now, aren't we? How long can we survive until we'll need more?" he asked aloud, flinching slightly as his wings returned into the depths of his body.

He was still for a moment, a slightly different tone taking to his voice. "_Yes, we are. We will last for about four days_."

"Good," he breathed.

"_There is still the impudent human to deal with_."

Abel turned towards the exit, stepping over the dry husks with sickening crunches. "_We still feel his presence. He seems to think that we've perished from this battle_."

"It is a shame that his life must end so early."

The blond man, ensued in removing organs from his freshest victim, started as the lights suddenly flickered out in half of the room. He cursed vehemently as he shut off the band saw he was using to cut through the specimen's ribcage, skin peeled aside.

He wiped his hands caked with blood on his lab coat, cautiously stepping forward.

Suddenly, loud bangs rang resoundingly in the room, momentary blooms of light accompanying the gunshots.

The man cried out in agony, instantly crippled to the floor.

Abel emerged from the cloak of darkness, reverted back into his human form. He held the gun steady, his face grim and calculating.

The blond man laughed despite himself, sounding decidedly evil. "Did you enjoy your meal, Crusnik?"

The priest's expression lightened sarcastically, nodding in agreement. "Why yes, it was probably the best I've had in awhile," he replied, smiling amiably, gun still trained on the scientist.

"I suppose this is the end, isn't it, priest?" the man figured, beads of sweat dribbling down his face.

Abel's expression became serious once more. "You still haven't told me the location of my brother." He cocked back the hammer of his percussion revolver threateningly.

"We've come a long way since the last World War. It's still a stalemate isn't it? Both sides still in severe contention..." The blond's hand moved to his thigh where Abel had shot. His fingers wormed through the weeping wound, gasping in pain as he fingered the spent bullet, seizing it and retracting quickly. The bullet clattered to the ground, his fingers stained a sticky red, the wound seeping blood and bubbling sickly.

He chuckled, face twisted in pain. "We're in a war of attrition, mate. You might want to reconsider where you stand here, eh?"

Abel's brows furrowed. "What do you mean?" he growled, glaring at the man savagely.

"You see, I've lived my life like a rat in the sewers, no compassion from anyone of my own race. Then, your brother comes along and gives my life purpose. I'm playing my part in creating a new world, mate, and I'm not going to let some dreary older brother of his cancel a global revolution. You Vatican dogs are the scourge to life itself. My mother, you see, she was executed by the Inquisition for being wed to my step father, a Methuselah. Then, he died trying to avenge her. You're simply the epitome of their disgraces to this planet, a being who kills those you've always considered to be so far below you. You were a good man once, Abel. But now, you're just an old dog chained to the fence. And it's about time that you were put down." He reached into his lab coat, pulling out a small apparatus and wagging it with a strained grin on his face.

"What is that?" Abel demanded, rushing forward a little.

"Oh, this? You see those blinking lights? Nice little thing, isn't it? Packs quite a decent punch, good for perfectly mimicking a gas explosion. Got one set up in here, the next room, and the holding chamber where your dinner was kept nice and fresh. Brother Cain was looking forward to killing you himself, but a decent man like him should focus on righting this messed up world we live in," the man sighed, glancing surreptitiously at Abel.

The man poised his finger over the trigger, smiling listlessly at Abel. "Night, mate."

"No—!"

A loud explosion rocked the night, stopping almost all traffic within the city of Barcelona, a large building bursting into flames. A rolling wave of heat and smoke and an inferno of flames within rolled and crested into the sky, like the mushroom seen after a nuclear explosion. The smoke burst through the cloud cover, its undersides flaring orange for a moment before dissipating away into the sky harmlessly. The sound of the thunderous blast rocked the city for miles around, the breath of the people sucked in and held.

* * *

><p>"Esther, we're here."<p>

The young girl awoke with a start, yawning wide and deep, having slept for eight hours in the car, every limb feeling cramped and tight. She unceremoniously stretched, letting out a breath when she finished.

She blinked blearily, rubbing her eyes as they focused on the dim skyline of the city and the creeping sun soon to fully crest the horizon. Wild assortments of colors were painted and smeared together fabulously across the sky, flames touching every cloud with an intense warmth.

Dietrich was speeding down the highway, finicky trees and tough grasses tugging in the winds from the Mediterranean sea. They were on the outskirts of the old city, nearing on to the painfully sleek and modern sector of it where the airport would have their flight waiting for them.

"It's beautiful," she breathed, eyes transfixed on the magnificent dawn, and on the endless expanse of the wine-dark sea that subtly reflected the heavenly tones of the sky, a path of glittering sunlight leading into what must have been a gateway to heaven.

"Unfortunately, once we reach the Empire, there will be no more sunrises to behold. Only an eternal twilight," Dietrich stated, eyes trained on her, reflected from the mirror.

"It won't be that way for long. Once things become the way they should, sunsets will be the start of our days," Esther sighed, a small smile alighting on her features, her eyes calm and gentle. She couldn't help but remember that sunrise, watching it with Sherah...

Dietrich chuckled to himself. "Your faith in brother Cain is admirable. Maybe he should make you a queen somewhere. Europa will be ours soon, so any place can become your domain."

Esther shook her head. "I could care less about titles and power. All I want is peace. I want to be able to live the rest of my life the way I want to."

"Would it be alright if I joined you?" Dietrich asked, easing the car down a loop on a main stretch of road that would lead directly into the proud and ancient city.

"That would make me the happiest person if you would," she smiled, the sunlight reflecting in her eager eyes.

* * *

><p>Abel gasped loudly as his wings loosened their tight cocoon around his body. He shivered as they retracted in, but stayed within his Crusnik form to protect himself from the searing remnants of flames.<p>

His burning eyes rested upon the charred remains of the man who had opposed him moments ago, a human form no longer discernible from the stiff ash and cinders beginning to crumble away in the wind.

Looking around, the former building was a chaos of unidentifiable lumps and masses like volcanic terrain, everything charred black and beyond any recognition. Abel peered around him, then contemplating the sky above, seeing the spreading creams of color of the rising dawn spreading vast and far above him.

Unfurling his wings again, he catapulted himself into the sky with a terrific flap of his wings, sending cinders and ash to fly around him in a dusty ring.

He ascended higher and higher, fluttering slightly before gliding over several building roofs, finally settling for an apartment rooftop far away from the wreckage, landing shakily.

Abel's Crusnik form melted away, and he slumped to the ground, breathing heavily as he caught his breath.

His phone began to ring and he immediately answered it. "Lady Caterina. Please take a memory scan of the last twenty four hours. Esther's within range and I must take my leave soon," he said diplomatically, eyes set on the airport close to the sea, with a large, streamlined airship stationed on an enormous landing bay.

A mild crackling ricocheted through his mind, and then it ceased, Caterina instructing, "_Do you see the airship down below? Based on your location, you should have a clear view of it._"

Abel nodded curtly. "Yes, I can see it quite plainly from here."

"_Good. Report there in half an hour. Father Tres reported that if you board now, you will avoid detection from Dietrich and Esther. I'll call back in six hours with my thoughts on today's occurrences. The boarding pass with take about five minutes to load, but even so, try to reach the location as quickly as possible. Call me if anything troubling arises._" The phone clicked and the call ended.

Abel couldn't help but linger, the sunrise becoming such an oft-missed spectacle that he remained to watch it. There was something extraordinarily pure yet powerful about it, especially on the vast expanse of the sea. It seemed as if it were a sign for him to stop and simply _be_, when the world only cared for action. He closed his eyes and truly took in the tang of the sea, his mind free to wander in this moment. He felt as if God were blessing him, baptizing him of his impurities and failures, the wind washing his sins away, dark thoughts overtaken by the dull roar of the sea. The sky seemed to make his fears insignificant, and for once after weeks of fear, everything never felt so possible.

* * *

><p>Last thoughts: Yeah, I definitely think that this story will be wrapped up in less than ten chapters, which is kinda a first for me. During the last paragraph, I was listening to Aniron by Enya, and I just wrote this. The song was just so perfect for writing it, and it seemed to fit the moment just right. If you've ever stood over a huge body of water at sunrise or sunset listening to this song, it's such a powerful experience that you can't really put into words. The song starts out sounding kinda anxious like how Abel feels before the next leg of his mission, but once the vocals start and until they end, it's just so calming and soothing, like there's an end in sight but it's <em>good<em>. And then the conclusion of the song is so dramatic and impelling like the strength Abel finds to continue onwards despite his hardship.

Erm, I'll stop babbling about that.

Anyway, I think that the plot is clear enough at this point that I don't really need to write much else about the story. About the graphic descriptions...I've got one hell of a twisted mind, huh? It just happens, I suppose, that I write such gory scenes without so much as flinching. Maybe it comes a little too easily?

Besides that, the forthcoming chapters will essentially be some rising action, and then the climax and resolution. If it's going to be in that order, I'm not so sure, but by the looks of it, I may even finish this story by year's end, or just slightly into the new one it at least. I've kinda been noticing that I usually add a plot-worthy battle to almost every chapter, so if you're getting sick of all the battles, then I'll be sure to tone it down in future fics.

I hope you guys are liking this story so far! Drop me a review and tell me what you think~!

~Peace, G.


	5. The Last Day Before We Say Good Bye

As Is

_The Last Day Before We Say Good-Bye_

(Warnings: A bloody battle, second to last chapter, sibling angst, Dietrich getting hit on, and an ominous conclusion...)

* * *

><p>The airship was as magnificent in as it was out. A spacious palace to take to the sky, it was just short of being heaven.<p>

Esther wasted no moments as she and Dietrich set through the impossibly large lobby, it consisting of a fountain a few stories high that shot neat sprays of crystalline streams that glanced off light like a momentary semblance of ice even higher into the air, all to descend down and around its elegant trappings with a final splash. There was a magnificent emerald colored chandelier of twisted, wobbly glass that caged in a single, large light that resembled a crystal, the sun to the single space. Decadent columns of chestnut marble rose to meet at the zenith of the lobby, spaced between small balconies that peered into the ship's four levels. Long and cylindrical, the ship was nothing short of the haute of latest design.

"Our room is one the second floor. We'll remain on this ship for two days, with it making another stop in Parsa, Greece, before heading away to the Empire of the True Race." Dietrich closed a small notebook with their itinerary scrawled in, hiding it in an inner coat pocket, no longer dressed as Esther's steward.

In the warm glow of the light like the sun above, Esther turned to him after admiring the craft's construct. "Oh, right."

He came close to her side. "Are you alright, Esther?" A soothing hand came to her back, and yet flinched to his touch.

"Everything...feels so surreal," Esther stated dreamily.

Dietrich seized her by her jaw, the girl making no motion of fear or surprise. He glared into her eyes, realizing that her irises were barely stained silver. He released her harshly, the girl stumbling slightly before recovering.

"This isn't good," he growled under his breath. He took her hand in his vice, hauling her roughly as they ascended a set of gracefully swooping stairs, his jaw set and thin brows furrowed deeply.

They came to a single hall of crimson red with many rooms on either side and sconces set between every door that spread blooms of light from the floor to the ceilings.

Upon the last room, at the very end, Dietrich hurled open the door to come to a stately place. It was magnificently large with a single, high window at the nose of the ship that showcased the rolling sea of clouds to a grand scale. A single, king-sized bed with luxurious décor sat before this window, sheltered by a four tier set of curtains that were drawn back. The floor was a deep chestnut with many other rich ornaments dressing the room to the height of luxury.

He cast Esther to the bed, the girl flung to the silken cream sheets in an unresponsive heap.

"Damn it all!" he cursed loudly, sending a swift kick towards a delicately carved table near the wall, it falling with a noisy clatter. Dietrich raked his fingers through his hair, murmuring curses beneath his breath.

Suddenly, he felt fingers skitter along his shoulder, up his neck until two sharp talons stroked themselves over his jugular, teasingly pressed close enough to draw a bead of blood.

"You're as sharp as ever, Nirivnia," Dietrich chuckled, the woman in question slithering from behind, her footfalls silent against the wood floors.

"And you haven't changed a bit, my Die-trick," Nirivnia pouted enchantingly, relinquishing her place from behind the man's back. Like Stella, she looked exactly like Lilith, only her hair was a startling blonde; everything else was precisely a mirror image of the deceased Crusnik.

Dressed in a slinky black dress, the woman sauntered over to the bed, sitting upon it with a churn of her heavy and long dress. "My, this one is especially beautiful. No wonder Stella took such a liking to the poor dear," the woman crooned, brushing a hand along Esther's forehead. Her eyes sank closed, eyelids fluttering as she entered a brief trance.

Dietrich watched with a grim face, gritting his teeth as Nirivnia removed her hand, the woman rising from the bed. "Stella's mind hold is wearing off. She was the most powerful of us when it comes to this, Dietrich, but her hold will be gone very soon, probably upon landing. There's nothing we can do except hold her hostage and pray that the rest of the hold remains strong until brother Cain can use her as leverage against Abel."

She stood before the window, folding her arms in contemplation. "Did you know that Abel loves this girl desperately? She's to become his Shadow if brother Cain can't win against him. It seems that the feeling is mutual, if overlooked, by these two pitiful birds."

"If we can keep her for another few weeks, he'll die and he'll pass with Lilith. We just need to bide our time and secret her away to where he'll never find her," Dietrich said, coming from behind Nirivnia and embracing her around her waist.

Nirivnia turned around, arms circling his neck. "You're a fool, my sweet little bird. Abel is on this craft, and he's preparing to mount an assault against us," she purred, lips brushing against Dietrich's slightly exposed neck, brushing past the hair that clung to the nape of his neck.

Dietrich winced as her fangs pierced his skin. "Then do what you must and fight him. You're a powerful woman who may be able to at least keep him at bay until brother Cain can hold her hostage for us. Once the bastard dies, brother Cain will be done with him and he'll be able to stage the last leg of his plan."

Nirivnia drew back. "You're so sure of this grandiose plan. And yet you speak so ill of dear Abel. I'm rather fond of his wings. Beautiful and majestic, like a rare black pearl. Such beautiful wings..." Blood dribbled down her chin, which she swiped away with a finger, licking it clean.

"Of course you're obsessed with his wings. It's only in your nature, I suppose," he scoffed, withdrawing from her embrace.

"I received some of Lilith's nanomachines when brother Cain took me in. I'm the same as my sisters. We all have a little soft spot for dear little Abel. It's a shame he's had to suffer, and that the one dearest to him won't live through the end," Nirivnia tsked, sinking to the bed, molding her form into Esther's limp body. She turned the young girl's prone face towards her, holding her like a mother would her child.

"Oh, she's much too cute to kill, Dietrich!" the woman whined. "I think that I'll make her my pet after we're done with this. Once dear little Abel is out of the picture, I can keep her, can't I? I want to see her grow up into a beautiful woman, than change her. I'll ask brother Cain."

Dietrich broke out into riotous laughter, clutching his sides. "She'll be nothing but a mangled corpse if he gives her to you!"

"Oh? As long as I have plenty of humans to sate us all, she'll live long enough. I'm sure brother Cain could change her and keep her as a bloodlet. Then we could play with her every day," the woman pouted, her ravenously long hair spilling over the bed and to the floor.

Dietrich shook his head. "I don't care. As long as brother Cain fulfills his plan and that Crusnik dies, you may do with her as you wish."

Nirivnia snaked from the bed and slithered next to Dietrich, holding his shoulders and tucking her head beneath the crook of his neck and head. "Thank you, my dear. I'll be taking my leave now. I can't wait to see lovely Abel's wings. Oh, I'm so excited."

Dietrich turned towards her, but she was gone, the only signs of her presence being the imprint next to Esther's sleeping body.

* * *

><p>He really should have been worrying and looking for Esther, but how can one go about that on an empty stomach?<p>

"Fank foo," he thanked a matronly waitress, sputtering crumbs from his mouth. The woman backed away, zooming from his closet-sized room when she thought he wasn't looking.

"Wath her ruth?" he asked aloud with a full mouth, practically swallowing down a hamburger whole. He drained the rest of a pint of beer the second after, sighing loudly after he was finished.

He sunk back on his bed, having stuffed himself with the amount only a glutton could stomach, sighing happily.

"That was delicious!" he exclaimed. The priest's feet rustled past a mound of wrappers and wrappings and cans of drinks as he reclined back, hands resting on a very happy stomach.

His smile quickly faded and he sat on the edge of the small bed, head falling into hands propped up on his knees. Abel knew as well as anyone that Esther was on the craft, but he was a sitting duck until the provocation of an attack or their arrival in the Empire. He wondered if he could receive help from his sister, but both of them knew that they were no match for Cain, even if they decided to work together in defeating their insane brother.

"She's so close, and yet..." he muttered under his breath, clenching his jaw and slamming a fist against the headboard of his small bed. "And my time is running short. I only have a week left..."

The lilting strain of laughter taunted through his mind, and he slowly raised his gaze, finding a silhouette leering down at him through the small porthole in his door.

"Poor little Abel," a hauntingly familiar voice teased, laughing carelessly.

The priest slammed the door open, finding that no one was in sight.

Suddenly, he was embraced from behind, his skin prickling sharply.

"Why hello, Abel. It's been far too long, hasn't it?" a voice like an enchantress addressed him, fingers coyly swirling patterns into his chest. How that voice made him ache for bygone days, and although he knew it to be trickery, his mind beating against it, and yet the lingering desire for this woman in his heart stirred and easily overtook him.

"Lilith," he choked out, his eyes beginning to water. The woman in question released him and came to his front, a haunting replica of the woman he once loved.

She brought a hand to her lips, a face so familiar that it was heart wrenching. Her eyes were affectionate yet sad, which summoned him like a beast to its master.

"Come with me." She took him by his hand, and he blearily followed. They came to a set of stairs at the very end of the endless hall, and she brought him up them, he following without a question crossing his mind nor lips. Here, now, was Lilith, the woman who still had a place in his ancient heart.

They came to an observation deck cut only by a pane of glass, a full view of the sky, save the floor, beholden to them. She released him, stepping back a bit to smile and clasp her hands together.

"Oh, Abel, my dearest one. Please, come to me," she beckoned, her expression at ease and wise, exactly how Abel had remembered her.

He did so instantly, taking his former beloved into his arms and holding her, she taking him by his neck.

"How did you come back, Lilith? I've missed you so much!" Abel breathed, burying his nose in her hair, remembering its scent that made him nostalgic and long for the past.

"I was never gone, Abel. You simply stopped looking for me."

He closed his eyes. Nothing else mattered but this moment, and how he wished that it would never end.

Remembrance of Esther came into his mind, and his eyes fluttered open. He hold on her loosened slightly, his heart clenching painfully.

"There's someone else, Lilith, who is precious to me now. I have to be with her..."

The woman in his arms stirred and tensed, but then relaxed and seized a stronger hold on him. "I'm the one who is most precious to you," she insisted softly.

Abel's arms dropped, and he fell silent. "I'm sorry, Lilith. I'm so sorry," he apologized in a whisper, standing motionless.

"Oh, Abel. No matter how much you try to resist me, you know just as well as I that your efforts are in vain. I will always have a piece of your heart."

Abel's eyes widened and he gasped as he felt a dirk thrust deep into his chest, she sheathing it a little farther as if in emphasis to her statement from before. He clutched his heart and she backed away, laughing airily into her hand.

The priest yanked it out with a terrific force, the dirk clattering to the tiles, blood beginning to bleed through his uniform, hot and sticky, sweat gathering on his brow as he rose to stand weakly. "You're not—!" he gasped, the illusion melting away to reveal a blonde-haired imposter of the one he once loved.

"I may not be her entirely, but you see, Abel, some of her resides in me, as she did in my sister Stella. Some of her nanomachines have transferred to my sisters and I and we resemble dear Lilith. What a poor, stupid woman she was!" Nirivnia taunted with delight regaling her voice.

"Cain...defiled Lilith's...grave?" Abel uttered in gasps, his human form unable to cope with the wound so readily. "He...robbed from her...to make you?"

Nirivnia tilted her head, brows raised in innocuous bemusement. "Oh, I'm sorry, was Lilith truly so special to you? Ah, that's right. Your heart became spoiled and tamed by that witch. I suppose it's not uncommon for traitors to find solace within each other's company."

Abel grit his teeth, slight electrical charges snapping and popping through the air around him. "You dare anger us, witch?" he growled, his voice becoming a guttural low.

Abel's eyes began to sear like heated metal, his hair raising on end as electric charges zapped through the strands, fangs protruding over his lips and skin darkening slightly like one entranced by death. Death's kiss graced his lips and a devil's smile spanned his face.

Nirivnia looked utterly bored. "You do realize that your dear little poppet is beneath your feet, don't you, Crusnik? Out completely cold and helpless. Now, say that I was to rend this airship in two, I wonder how many pieces her little body would shatter into?"

"You wouldn't dare!" Abel cried, threatening her with bared fangs.

"Watch me, you murderer!"

**Crusnik 02**

**Release of Restrictions at 50% - Confirmed**

Nirivnia cackled joyously as Abel's wings spanned the length of the observation room, tips screeching against glass and they bent inwards slightly. Abel watched with a trace of anxiety as the woman became consumed by a dark cloud conjured from no where, her form ceasing to exist except within it.

Large flaming wings like those of a phoenix snapped out, and a flaming dragon's head lashed from the shadows, hissing ferally at Abel. The cloud melted away to reveal a chimera, with the large, flaming body of a lion with the wings of a phoenix and the tail of a scorpion, a mane from head to the base of her lengthened neck ruffled from the crackling flames. She crouched on her hackles, the room becoming cleaved open by her virulent claws.

Abel held fast to his weapon, the multi-bladed scythe now materialized in his hands, realizing that a tough battle was ahead. Already he could sense that this Shadow of Cain's was extremely powerful, and that his mightiest efforts would be necessary to eradicate this blunder to humanity.

The glass shattered resoundingly, holding together for but a moment before the eroding winds tore it free, shards sprinkling to the ground, most left to be carried away into the roiling clouds of the sky.

Nirivnia took this moment to pull away, bounding from the former observation deck and landing heavily on the metal skin of the craft, mists of clouds simmering hotly as they encountered her inferno of a form. Abel beat his wings heavily, letting the currents of air lift him effortlessly before making a deft landing before her. The chimera roared savagely, a primordial sound ripping from her throat.

"I dare you try to claim her, you born of human deception!" she cried, her voice telepathically blazing above the equally fierce winds. She made the first move, using her wings to flap and gain traction against the wind, roaring like a lion before lunging high into the air, her claws exposed and trained on the Crusnik.

"You're no different, spawn of science," he hissed back, ducking to dodge the blow, the chimera's back legs skidding as she lost traction for a moment.

Abel flared his wings out, his body tense as he made himself receptive to charges of electricity, it jumping and leaping like dolphins from cloud to cloud, each contact causing every one to glow an iridescent blue. It surged to his wings where it became centered, waves of it tingling down and repeating themselves.

He aimed his scythe at the beast, a blast of unstable electricity becoming concentrated in a beam that hit her dead on.

Nirivnia howled in pain, the flames of her body ceasing for a moment as her body froze and became like brittle coal, black as night. The electricity danced harmlessly yet violently over her body, retreating into a cloud to be released to the earth as a thunderous shock of lightning.

Her eyes opened and the flames reignited on her body in a single rush, charring the ground beneath into paw prints of blackened metal. The flames intensified, and she chuckled darkly, as only a beast could.

Abel's wings dropped slightly, the charge now having been lost. The level of electricity that had decimated two Inquisitorial airships into a deafening ruin had absolutely no effect on this chimera.

He grit his teeth, summoning within him the most powerful embrace of electricity possible, this being surely the most powerful he'd ever summoned. The skies roiled with dark and imposing clouds, mighty crackles of lightning and thunder raining down and around Nirivnia.

The world became a darkened one lit only by mighty shocks of lightning that threatened to destroy.

Straightening his wings as stiff as they could, Abel roared inhumanly as the lightning gathered around him in a ring wide and long enough to embrace the whole airship. Nirivnia became alarmed, remembering her masters within, and took to the skies. Abel was grounded due to his need to release the charge, but was relishing the destruction of the chimera with an inhumane sheen in his devilish eyes.

"Maybe you burn as brightly in death as you have in life," he growled, then raising his hands, wings moving in syncopation to conduct a ravishing orchestra.

The lightning coalesced into a mass of dangerous electricity, electrifying the dark skies with terrifying sound and wide-reaching reflections of blue and white off every cloud. Abel brought his wings and hands down in one swift motion, the cloud of sparking energy crackling and bursting with intermittent sprays of lightning as it swiftly cast the chimera asunder.

Nirivnia failed to receive the worst of the blow as her body became consumed in a foil to the lightning: a great inferno of flames that swallowed her into a sphere, guarding her as the lightning cloud collided violently.

Abel watched haplessly as the fire and lightning dueled for dominance over the over, lightning cutting through walls of flames before tongues of fire snapped them apart to be reabsorbed back into the atmosphere. Both fought valiantly and violently together, before both simply dissipated into nothingness, completely losing their power to the elements.

Nirivnia careened from her weakening wall of flames, speeding towards Abel as she launched a violent, bestial assault. She hit him brutally, a crater forming from their impact in the airship.

She began clawing and biting Abel's face, jaws snapping loudly together with hot tendrils of heated breath sneaking by his face, a successive series of blows lashing across skin that struggled to heal, unable to keep up with her relentless assault. Abel took hold of his scythe that had been knocked away as his hands kept his attacker at bay, lancing her through her heart.

She screamed bloody murder, animistic howls blending sickly with a woman's desperate screams. Abel kicked the large form away, regaining his balance, spitting a mouthful of blood rudely to the metal husk. She landed resoundingly against the airship's surface, quickly leaping again to her feet.

They began a more bestial kind of combat, coming at each other again and again with the weapons born from them. She caught his scythe in her mouth, lashing her head violently like a dog in order to try to dislodge it from his hands. He flicked near the end, the long whip-like, segmented blades snapping forth to catch her across the face, a wound and spraying blood to form a red welt.

She flinched back, only coming again to snap at his limbs while he blocked her with his talons, each making the other a bloodied, mangled mess.

Savage blows were exchanged for hours, Abel trying to conserve his strength, well aware of waning life that created limits on his normally absurdly powerful attacks. He knew that after this, he'd only have enough strength to sustain the Crusnik form for a short length of time, each draining battle requiring more and more blood of the Methuselah.

Nearing the sunrise and the near expenditure of his strength, Abel decided to take drastic action.

He sharpened his wings into points, training them on the greatly weakened Nirivnia, the chimera near to her end just as Abel was. She remained stubborn and proud, baring her fangs in defiance as she struggled to uphold her bestial form.

They met again in a long, ensuing battle of endless blows and spraying blood once more, this time lasting for perhaps a dozen hours. A particularly severe blow glanced off her side, intestines and other internal organs beginning to seep out. She still continued her suicidal assault, claws blindly grasping for flesh to tear asunder.

"_Please, end it for me! I've been alive for too long! Kill me, Crusnik! Please...destroy me_!"

Abel started sharply at the mournful voice of a woman, realizing that it was Nirivnia speaking to him.

"Why should I do that?" he demanded dubiously, thrusting the blades of his scythe further through her ribcage.

"_I never asked for this! Cain...he changed me! I was human, and now I am this beast! He controlled my thoughts like he did the ones of your beloved! Nothing I do is truly what I want! Please...I want to die remembering that I'm a human and not a monster! My family was all slaughtered by his men... Please, let me be at peace_!" she pleaded sorrowfully, the chimera making no attempt to claw him.

"Alright," Abel agreed with a brutal grit to his voice, letting his wings close in around them.

Her blood seeped through every his pore, through his wings and skin and mouth, knowing that it wouldn't be enough to truly last. Her took her for every drop within her body, but even still he craved deeply for more.

Hurling the body off into the tempest of wind, he shuddered with relief, dragging his severely weakened body to what remained of the observatory. Shielding him from the harsh wind, he dropped to the sheltered stairs,

His bestial breaths heated the small space, reeking of her blood. His wounds began to slowly seal themselves, blood disappearing completely.

All that was left, now, was his human form, deathly weak and unable to even stand.

Abel wrenched his eyes open, finding himself where he'd collapsed, only in the company of someone else.

"Do you have any idea how long you were fighting Nirivnia, Crusnik?"

Abel weakly lifted his head, finding Dietrich resting laxly against the rail, piercing the helpless man with pure, unadulterated hatred in his eyes.

"No," he gasped, his voice barely a hoarse whisper.

"It was early morning when your battle began. This flight is two days long. And we're already within the territory of the Empire... Nirivnia...the strongest and most driven of them all. A worthy sacrifice in weakening one near death, isn't that so, Nightroad?" Dietrich glared at Abel in scorn of the man's prone form, utterly pathetic and helpless, like an unborn child.

"I've been fighting...for two days?" he asked in disbelief, the need for water desperately clawing at his parched throat.

"Didn't I say that she was the strongest of all his creations, priest? You fought and won. Although, it seems to have shortened your lifespan to perhaps a week or less," Dietrich observed. "Brother Cain predicted this, for the same would've happened to him had he not devised the ingenious solution that he did. And now, here you are, on the path to death with no salvation in sight. But, brother Cain thought that he might offer you a little head start."

Abel watched the boy weakly, listlessly.

When Abel made no remark or reply, Dietrich continued. "I'm going to shove you off this aircraft, Nightroad. We're right above the Empire, and closing in on the airport near you bastard sister's palace. What you're going to do is fly to her, Nightroad, to rest and recover for a few days. Then, when you're prepared to fight to the death, brother Cain will send a courier who will guide you to his location where you will do battle. He decided that he doesn't want to fight a weakling, and wants to foist this opportunity to you as a last gesture as his brother."

Abel simply mouthed a useless string of soundless words together, causing Dietrich to sigh in irritation.

"Personally, I think that he's being too kind to you. There is no fairness in war." He hefted the tall and heavy priest on a shoulder, Abel's shoes dragging and bouncing as Dietrich ascended the stairs.

They came to the windswept observation deck, or what was left of it, shattered and strewn tile and metals littering every pocket of metal and space of the worn battlefield.

"Luckily, everyone on board this aside from me, you, and Esther is a Methuselah in brother Cain's charge, so the battle could be carried out without delay to our plan. Otherwise, we'd be at the mercy of some bumbling Terran," Dietrich scoffed, the deck much more calm, seeing that the airship's speed had lessened considerably.

"We've an hour until this journey ends, Crusnik," Dietrich hissed in Abel's ear, "so you'd be wise to find shelter as quickly as you can." He poised himself at a rail, leaping over it swiftly.

"Agh, you fat priest!" he cursed, Abel's heavy body unsettling the slim boy, poised before a precarious edge of the cylindrical craft, light glinting harshly off its sides. "Alright, there's the palace. Have a nice trip, you damned bastard," he hissed condescendingly, letting Abel crudely slide down to free fall from the ship.

With satisfaction, he saw as a pair of heavy black wings flew the enemy away, towards the shining citadel of the Empress's palace.

* * *

><p>Beams of light split through his vision, making him squint away with a faint grumble escaping from his lips. He forced his eyes open, a heavenly swath of sheer silk swept above his head, a single chandelier recessed into a vaulted ceiling beaming the interrupting light.<p>

He groaned as he forced himself to sit up, a hand meeting his throbbing head.

"Brother!" a heartfelt squeal sounded, he immediately getting attacked by a slim young woman. Deliriously, his mind became scrambled.

"Esther...?" he managed, his voice sounding alien and hoarse to him.

"Noooo! It's your cute sister! Hello? It's Seth. Duh, Abel," Seth pouted, pumping her legs next to Abel as she lay next to him, the man blearily taking in his surroundings, calloused hands caressing the heavenly soft sheets.

Looking around, he found himself in a room with high vaulted ceilings as if it were in the Vatican, religious and mythical imagery dancing in their own little skies. The bed itself was excessively rich and large, the single polar bear rug acting as the rug. Furniture was spread wide throughout the room with late Renaissance flairs, being a gloating display of exorbitant wealth. Molded, lacing columns that flew into the vaulted ceilings were stamped with gold leaf, even more exquisite pieces of intricate works were spread loosely yet tastefully throughout the room, reminiscent of a lavishly decorated theater. Everything was in heavenly golds and creams, decadent wealth smothering every inch of the room in heavenly grandeur.

"What happened?" he croaked, collapsing against the bed, his mind and body reduced to swirling pain, mired in weakness.

Seth sat up, looming over her brother. "You fell from the sky and landed on my balcony. You came here a few days ago, at night. I was terrified for you, Abel, because you were bleeding heavily and everything was scarred up pretty badly."

Abel opened his mouth to speak, but was hushed by Seth. "I know everything, Abel. The Duchess of Milan called me personally and we talked over everything that's happened to you these past few months. She also reviewed your most recent battle when you arrived here and explained that to me as well. There's nothing you need to tell me."

Abel fixed his eyes on the chandelier, his body shivering with cold. "Esther...she's been forever converted to Cain's side, Seth. My death is assured," he moaned, turning to the side and burying his face in soft folds of silk.

"Maybe not. The Duchess told me of something else as well. You might want to listen up, Abel," Seth said, an alluring hope within her words.

Abel raised his head barely, watching her with a steady gaze of conflicting emotions.

"The influence over Esther has been decreased greatly, Abel. She said that a Father Tres intercepted a signal sent a few days ago between two unknown parties that spoke of Esther. Their mental hold over here has shattered completely. One named Dietrich said that a scan of her mind revealed that some very strong feelings for someone superseded their hold on her. She's unconscious, but if she can be awakened, she will be completely back to normal."

"Of course, that will be the hard part, your Eminence."

Abel rose to see Asran standing rather unexpectedly before the bed, her brow twitching at the closeness of Seth to Abel. "Um, your Majesty, what is he doing in your Excellency's resting quarters?" she asked rather hesitantly, straining to keep her rather explosive temper in check.

Seth furrowed her brows with light indignation, folding her arms defensively. "What? Can't siblings be close every once in awhile?"

Asran's face phased to a shade of hot pink. "He's your...brother?" she choked out.

"Lady Asran, it's enough that I've permitted you to be within my presence free of any formalities, face to face so casually. Now, I've heard that you haven't exactly been the kindest hostess in the past. Be nice to him from now on or else I'll exile you from the Empire," Seth threatened, a coy grin splitting over her face, eyes devious.

Asran blushed harder and bowed repeatedly, her face becoming even more flushed. "Of course! I live to serve your Highness!"

Abel listlessly stared on, never injecting to say something stupid of inane. Asran raised a brow at this. "Your majesty...what is wrong with Father Abel?"

She shook her head. "I order you to drop all formalities," she ordered faintly, wrapping her arms around Abel's unresponsive neck, her eyes becoming teary and sad.

Seth closed her eyes, relaying a telepathic message of everything she'd learned to Asran, the woman's eyes opened wide in disbelief.

"I'm so sorry, Abel. This is truly—"

"Please, leave me alone, you two. Everything that has happened...it will always sound terrible, but it was bound to happen. It's only a shock when you realize that it's inevitable. Disaster is only frightening in the present," Abel sighed, his voice sounding much clearer.

"What do you want me to do about this, Empress?" Asran asked, her chin held by a hand and her expression looking stressed,

"I want you to alert the inner circle of nobles. My oldest brother, Cain, is extremely powerful. If he were to defeat my brother, it would spell the end for me as we know it as well as unravel everything that I've worked so hard for. Gauge who will remain loyal to me. Be frank if you must. In situations such as these, I must know, otherwise I won't know who to trust. Go, Duchess, and return only with those who choose to be as comrades. The document of this this order has been drafted and completed. Take it and summon an emergency council," Seth commanded, her regal presence overriding her normal deviousness.

Asran bowed and left the chambers, the large, ornately carved double doors slamming shut.

"We have three days, Seth. Three days until I die. Three days until the fate of the world can be decided. Cain, he's been bioengineering breeds of Methuselah that take form of mythical beasts with even more terrifying powers. If I die, these creatures could become an army easily enough to take over the world. Not even you could defeat such forces. He'd convert your subjects over to his side..." Abel bemoaned, head bowed with his bangs hiding his face.

"What if I helped you? Maybe we could beat him together!" Seth suggested with a constrained voice, tears building up in her eyes, a firm hand on Abel's shoulder.

He shook his head. "He made it explicitly clear that if you did, he would slay Esther and declare war on the humans without hesitation. Only I can go. At least this way, we have a chance at winning."

Seth seized him around the neck. "I'm so sorry, Abel! I'm so sorry!" she cried, clinging to him.

"I have something to ask of you, Seth."

"I'll do anything!" she cried into his shoulder, sobbing hard.

"Should I fail, I want you to bury Esther and I with Lilith in the grave beneath the Vatican. I know that if I die, she will, too. Promise me that you'll do that for me?" he whispered, his voice a despairing low.

Instead of responding, Seth could only cry softly, whimpering pathetically into the night.

* * *

><p>Last thoughts: This is almost the last chapter! There will be two chapters at the most to go, so this story is almost over! It's definitely one of the quickest stories I've ever written—it's only been about a week! Well, a few more days to go~<p>

Some notes to explain things: To all of you who have noticed changes in the percentages that convey Abel's power levels, please know that I'm only taking a bit of creative license in allowing him to unleash different levels with slight differentiation in what begets from those power levels, but it shouldn't be so radically different from canon. Also, the reason that he doesn't use his power at 80% or higher is because of his severely deteriorating lifespan due to his upcoming Millennium. Because of it, wielding too much power would cause him to expend the rest of his strength and die much sooner, even if he came upon a whole crock of vampires to sate his bloodlust. So now, due to fighting for two days straight as well as the whole month before, he's presently down to three days until he dies. So...you can probably guess that one chapter equals one day. And, yeah, you mostly have guessed right. But, don't worry: it'll be an ending worth waiting for~

ALSO, the material conceived for this story, from some short-lived OC's to some ideas regarding the Crusniks and plot bunnies and HELL the whole plot, has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the main and are conceptions of my imagination ONLY. Because, honestly, pretty much all fanfiction is an expression of that, so just keep that in mind as you read, got dat? It's Alternate Universe for a reason, kiddies. :3

Also, Happy New Year's Eve to you all! Today is December 31st, 2011, the last day of the year. Tomorrow I'm going to update with the final battle chapter...I really hope that you've all enjoyed it so far. This will definitely be a first time that I've done an update of this sort...guess it's okay to celebrate~

Let's let this year be a good one, okay guys? Forget everything that was wrong with this year and only focus on the good that's to come. You'll have a whole year to make amends and drastically change yourself for the better, so don't waste a second of it!

Love you all to death... Have a beautiful year to come, ok?

~Peace, G.


	6. To Die Before The Last

As Is

_To Die Before The Last..._

(Warnings: The final battle, brother vs brother, some alterations, a techno city, Final Fantasy-esque battle...M for blood and descriptions of fairly heavy violence)

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry, Seth. I have to go now," Abel said finally as he stood on the balcony, brother and sister watching the feeble rays of the sun's rising.<p>

"I understand what you have to do, brother. I can't stop you, but..." The sounds of sniffling overtook her voice, the slip of a ruler wiping away the tears as they pricked warmly from her eyes.

He turned to her, his expression both sad and gentle. "I'll stop him, Seth. I promise you that I will," he whispered softly into her ear as he stooped down to hug her. She caught him around the neck, nodding furiously.

They parted. For one last time, he took in the splendor of his sister's empire. Like multitudes of chess pieces on their board, many protruding sky scrapers rose in a lonely line of sentinels against the sky, readily being consumed by the rising sun's intensity as if they were sacrifices. Below and around, lower buildings of many intriguing and beautiful designs spread lavishly over every mile of this paradise, the sun glancing off their surfaces brightly like the stars of night. Sparse woodlands and gardens encompassed the massive palace in a tender ring of emerald, sporadic blooms of color like fleeting gemstones. And finally, the sky, so hopeful, yet it pushed away the faint hope of relief almost too eagerly.

"I can't wait to have Esther as a sister, brother. I want to tell you a special secret that no one will ever know: when this is all over, I'm going to try to find my Shadow. I'll be reaching my Millennium, too, you know..." she whispered, nuzzling into Abel's neck, relishing in the calm of their final bonding.

"A-And when you've defeated Cain, I'll make you such an enormous feast with everything you like! You won't know where to start..." She felt his hands tighten around her, then finally release her.

"Stay strong," he mumbled finally.

Abel, unable to face his sister's maddeningly remorseful stare, leapt into the sunburst of light, feeling as he sharply descended to the ground below.

* * *

><p>He thought he heard a mournful wail from behind, but forced himself to persevere.<p>

"Are you the one they call Abel Nightroad?" a voice hissed from behind, causing Abel to whirl around and sear the one behind with a hostile glare.

A being in a cloak, their voice and form too androgynous to discern any gender, appeared before Abel. From an alley between two lonely buildings this creature had emerged, in the shadow of the grand Star Palace that now loomed over them.

"Yes," Abel answered tersely, eyes narrowing and expression suspicious, body tensed and rigid. His face was guarded as the being studied him for a moment before nodding and droning in a soft voice:

"Follow me."

* * *

><p>"M-Master Cain!" Dietrich gasped, brought to his knees before a man like a furious archangel.<p>

Cain himself sat on a throne of large pipes and gleaming technology, neon-glowing wires cascading down into the ground where they dispersed at a wide swath throughout the room, the cruelly sharp metal surfaces reflecting their light back sharply.

Dietrich collapsed to the brilliantly shining floor, the sounds of his waning strength echoing cavernously. "W-Why?" he choked out, clutching his bleeding heart.

Cain smiled amiably. "Oh? I'm simply growing bored of you, that's all~" One of the Lilith clones fell to the floor, greedily licking the blood as it pooled around the boy, a few others joining her.

Cain watched on in boredom, his naked form conforming to the shape of his throne. The dim blue light coldly reflecting off the walls cupped his face, the other half masked in shadow.

Only his genitals were clothed, the entirety of his back consumed in massive chords that sucked sickly throughout the room. The devilish yet angelic man smiled as Dietrich staggered to a rise, stumbling helplessly from the room with one of the clones to aid him.

To his side, Esther lay unconscious, the mind control he held over her having faded completely. Her feelings for that idiot brother of his were simply too strong, and her subconscious rebelled against his nearly perfect control, taking nearly two months to overcome it in dreams and nightmares. Inside, she was powerful, which intrigued him greatly.

The girl was no longer dressed in the atrocious Terran clothing from before; rather, she now wore one of the dresses commonly worn by his clones, and it was much more suitable at that.

"Listen now, little Terran. I'll tell you my plan, since you'll be awake soon enough to watch it unfold." He stood up, a long train of cloth trailing unevenly from behind as he rose from his throne, the cords disconnecting grotesquely from his back, the blood of Methuselah dribbling from the mouths of each.

Esther in his arms, he took her over to a single corridor, narrow and high, tremors of the beasts beyond clamorously resonating through the space. Cain came to a catwalk where Methuselah of all sorts were kept in test tubes great and small, some disgorging creatures at sporadic moments to join with keepers, all of whom resembled Abel's past darling, Lilith. Presiding high above them, in unison they turned to genuflect on one knee, creature and clone alike.

He let Esther down to her feet, holding and balancing her to one side with a steady arm.

"You see, darling girl, these Methuselah are going to comprise a great army that will attack the Terrans and the Empire at once, which should be enough to spark a war. They exist in the tens of thousands, all modeled after creatures in lore and legend that brought disaster and devastation to the Terrans who created them. When this war reaches its height—it should take no more than a year to reach its epoch—I plan on entering my sister's Empire and murdering her, then to take the throne. With Abel dead, it shouldn't be hard at all. I will then take the throne and reign as master of the True Race, and we shall put the Terrans in their place...those filthy Terrans whom detest the very beings they created. Just as I destroyed those who created and subsequently hated me, they shall reap the rewards of redemption as we take our rightful place as the true and new rulers of the planet," Cain explained, sweeping grandly over the massive laboratory before them with his free hand.

"Master Cain," an auto-jager rasped, "it seems that your brother is fast approaching and will be here momentarily."

Cain considered it coyly before extending a hand and blasting it away with waves of wind and sound, blood shedding everywhere with a wet splatter to the walls. "Dear, dear, I never did like hearing news of him," Cain sighed, coddling his little pet closer.

A closer inspection of her face made his own light up. "My, no wonder my girls all took a liking to you! Such a cute and beautiful young lady!" he praised to the despondent girl, shaking her lifeless shoulders in a gesture of enthusiasm.

Her head lolled forward, prompting a gasp from the maniac Crusnik. "Oh, you poor dear. Don't worry: I'll hang dear Abel's body where you can see him every day, so you won't be sad~" he exclaimed in a singsong voice, a perturbing smile flitting to his features.

"Come, come; this little spell over you will be losing its effect. I'll let you play with your dear sisters so that you can hear the sounds of dear Abel's death, and then I'll transform you into a Methuselah with your memories erased. You'll get to fight with those filthy humans... No, I think that I will go upon what dear Nirivnia told me. I'll make you my little pet, sweet angel. You're much too cute to sacrifice! Besides, I'll have more than enough Methuselah, much better than the norm, to assail this cruel and filthy world of ours," Cain crooned, sweeping the girl back into his arms and hoisting her off to the throne room once more.

His bare feet stepped through the remains of blood from Dietrich's earlier assailency, shivering perceptibly at the foul taste of the boy's blood. He leapt gracefully over the base of his throne and the contortion of pipes before coming to it, then settling down with Esther in his arms, letting the cords seek their way back into his own back. He winced slightly as they reattached, but moaned even more at the pleasurable strength filling him to the core.

Snuggling Esther close on his lap, he stroked her hair as she was held close to his chest. "Dear older brother will be here soon, my little butterfly. Don't worry; this will all be over soon enough."

* * *

><p>The cloaked being had led Abel to the most unfit of places in the empire: for hours they'd trekked outside of city limits, coming to a blazing hot plateau mounted by all sorts of scraggly grasses and all manner of dusty, rocky terrain the color of clay beneath the azure sky and striking sun.<p>

The auto-jager had shivered tremulously before completely collapsing, its form evident from the sounds of rattling, heaping armor and the stench of foul preservatives that reeked from the corpse that soon dissipated in the intense sunlight to drift away in the breeze as ash.

"Wait, where did you take me? There's nothing here!" Abel cried foul, shaking the empty cloak in frustration.

He was reduced to his knees in the sand, letting the empty wind carry his hair slightly, his clothes much too hot for the brutal weather drenching over the land now. Abel slammed his fist into the dirt, screaming, "Damn it!" into the empty Turkish sky.

I_diot Crusnik! Do not lose yourself so soon! Look beneath your feet, fool._ Abel wearily raised his head, his eyes suddenly fixing themselves on an unnaturally smooth sheet of earth perforated with bands of metal and calloused by years in the desert.

He rose and stood over it, studying the alien object in a natural world.

_You know well enough what to do, idiot! Speak your title! _

"United Nations Aerospace Force Lt. Colonel Abel Nightroad," Abel began uncertainly, "attached to Red Mars Program management, security division. Recognize by UNASF 94AR MOC 666 02ak..."

The one block trembled beneath the ground, it shuddering open with an ancient whine, screeching into the empty desert air. A column molded to the shape of the metal sheet rose with an odd configuration of buttons and dials. Abel instantly recognized it, almost instinctively entering in the correct combination.

Another terrific screech ricocheted through the desert, unleashing an unyielding squeal as gears and mechanisms in abandon for centuries began their work after nearly a millennium. Abel vaulted forward to land to his hands and knees as a sudden force shook the platform free, shakily descending into the earth below.

"It's been a very long time, but I do believe that these are the Istanbulan Mines, second only to Londinium's Ghetto. My, it's been far too long since I was last here," Abel observed, his eyes roving as his form became consumed in shadow as the platform lowered, cords and recesses of lines cascaded with him to the earth below.

Suddenly, it gave way to a mechanical kingdom in the earth below, pyres of sharp metal easily rivaling the size and height of the Empire's own protruded sharply like serrated teeth into the forlorn abyss of a sky above, everything else resembling the chaos of a computer grid in how irregular structures spiked here and there and the dizzying array of roads where black masses shuffled in dreary file to a destination far to the west. To Abel's right, dazzling skyscrapers jutted sharply into the tendrils of blue mist hanging ominously above the workings of this place. From his aerial view, the skyscrapers made a formation like a cross with interminable bands of roads circling it along with numerous more that struck out from the cross in fiercely lit appendages that seemed to be ignited roads. From between these roads rose innumerable black masses like minor buildings in a city no more than a few stories high each. Enshrouding it all was heavy cobalt-blue mists that hung like suffocating fog. To Abel's senses, he realized that it was actually exhaust fumes into dizzying heights of pollution, easily brushing up to the domed ceiling of complicated arrays of pipes, wires, and metallic frames at least five hundred feet above.

He coughed as the platform descended into a thick cloud of smog, irregular lights from the city below bleeding through like stains on parchment. When it finally broke through, he took in a deep, refreshing breath of the much cleaner air on the mine's floor.

It fastened itself to a landing dock that Abel stepped on to. In the space at least ten miles long, Abel knew that Cain would likely be situated at its epicenter, the center of all activity of the mines.

The wide landing bay was crossed soon enough, but Abel soon found himself face to face with a large griffin in the mockery of a town center.

His fingers poised over the butt of his gun, but the intelligence in its eyes and the shake of its eagle-like head made him lower his guard slightly.

"You have nothing to fear, Crusnik. I am simply a messenger for brother Cain. You may be at ease until you meet him," the griffin explained, shifting to its hind legs as it swiveled around.

"May I ask what my brother is planning here?" Abel asked as they continued walking deep into the artificial city, the skyscrapers beyond looming closer and closer with each step.

"I am but one of thousands created as a part of brother Cain's army. We plan on attacking both the Terrans from Londinium and the Methuselah in the Empire from both the Ghetto and the Mines, thus the choice of location for the revival of two once very vital components to the Terrans' vie for global domination. Once brother Cain has defeated you, symbol of the Terrans' oppression of Methuselah, he will briefly recover then begin finalizing his attacks on both cities. From there, my brothers and sisters will fight valiantly for the future of our kind," the griffin explained tersely, never even glancing behind, probably done out of spite towards him.

"If you feel so strongly towards my existence, then why don't you just all attack me at once and destroy me? If you scorn me so, I'm here for you to destroy easily," Abel countered, his face hardening harshly.

The griffin slowed its pace somewhat. "Brother Cain is wise as he is fair. Because of what you've become to him, you're a blot on the stain of this world and he deems it fit to eradicate you himself. You see, he wishes us to remain pure by letting himself battle and defeat your stain-filled existence, as part of his sacrifice to regain balance in the world. In doing so, he martyrs himself for our sakes by coating himself in your sinful presence. This way, we can go into battle with light hearts and clear consciences."

Abel ran to the being's front, it rearing indignantly and backing away on raised hackles. "What are you doing?" it snarled ferally, fear and anger in its eyes all at once.

"None of this is necessary, you know! You've been lied and deceived to! Look deep into yourself; is this what you truly want? Methuselah CAN and do get along with Terrans, as evidenced by my own sister's Empire! They live in peace and harmony, so why can't you and I and every Methuselah and Terran do the same?" Abel pleaded, he being open and honest to his words.

The griffin fell to the ground, writhing in pain as something deep and long oppressed stirred violently against the restrictions placed over its heart as the result of Cain's dominating control over every turned Methuselah.

Weeping could be heard diffusing into the air, sourcing from the downed griffin. It struggled to rise and Abel ran to her side as a comfort and support.

"I never wanted this! Cain is truly a monster! I was living in peace until—" Her voice became broken by her sobbing, not a tear pricking to its bestial eyes. Abel shushed her, stroking her beak soothingly.

"I don't have long to live," he whispered, resting his forehead against the griffin's cool and hard snout. "I'm sure you may know why... I have a few days at most, which is why I'm in desperate need of help to reach him more quickly and defeat him..."

"Get on my back. You're truly a selfless man, Abel Nightroad. I long for your victory."

Together, the flew into the pungent blue sky, barreling through as they careened towards Cain's lonely citadel with unrelenting speed.

* * *

><p>Cain lifted his eyes rather dully to the door, head still turned to press against his lovely little bird, pulling her tauntingly close with his hands around her waist. He smiled teasingly, eyes trained upon Abel as he planted a kiss to Esther's brow.<p>

An angry salvo of gunfire sounded resoundingly through the deathly quiet room, Cain rising to meet it with a raised hand that froze the piercing shots in mid air. The hold on them dropped and clattered noisily to the floor.

"I was wondering when you would arrive, my fat old brother. Consuming such a tremendous amount of blood and food makes one extremely stupid and slovenly, getting to places far past schedule. Truly, I'd hoped that you and I would be fighting by now. I have two days until I wish to get this war underway and I can't wait until you arrive half-dead, as you are now, can I?" Cain pouted, cuddling Esther infuriatingly close to his chest.

"Let her go, now!" Abel ordered, prepping to fire another round at his bastard of a younger brother holding his young love like she was Cain's own.

"In case your glasses have fogged up, you fat old man, I might remind you that you seem to be ambivalent of who possesses the most power right now. Not to mention, what if I carelessly pull her a little closer and forgot to use my power to deflect the bullets? I don't suppose it would pain you much if one of YOUR bullets strikes her little heart and sends her off to heaven with her dear father and lady bishop?" Cain teased derisively, stroking Esther's hair.

"You wouldn't DARE!" Abel thundered, expression absolutely livid, gun trained on Cain's face.

"Oh? But I would, Abel. Unlike you, I place value in hopes and desires that would benefit all of mankind, vampire or human. If she dies, it means no more to me than a dying ant would to you. You place too much at stake in petty little chases and desires, Abel. You can't act unless you're under someone else's boot. It's no wonder that you're the one who buried himself with a dead woman while I was able to act and strengthen myself. Why, even little Seth was able to rule over an entire empire in such a frighteningly short amount of time. And where were you? Mourning for some petty woman." Cain's face became spoiled by disgust, his body seeming to shiver tremulously.

Abel fell to his knees, weakly dropping his gun with a clatter to the ground.

"Please, Cain, my brother, let her go. You have no idea how much she means to me, how much I love her. I can't live without her," Abel pleaded pitifully, head bowed in supplication.

Cain's eyes glowed a dangerous, livid crimson. "I won't kill her, Abel." He rose, setting her down, stepping aside as he pressed a button so that a glass shield enclosed the girl in an impossibly strong enclosure. "I'll let her live as my bloodlet, and beforehand I'll wipe her memory, then change her into a Methuselah," he spoke gravely, hair masking his face ominously.

"But, you," his voice dipped into a bestial low, like a beast ready to tear from its cage. His fingers stiffened into a semblance of talons, and he paused before taking a step towards Abel.

"YOU'RE NO BETTER THAN A FILTHY TERRAN, YOU WEAK AND DESPICABLE WRETCH!" he screamed with a terrifying high, his hand slamming into Abel's throat, lifting his older brother higher than he would've.

"YOU," he collided Abel into a wall, a crater forming instantly from the impact, the echo rumbling through the hollow walls, "ARE THE MANIFESTATION OF EVERYTHING I DESPISE."

"C-Cain, pl—" Abel gasped, clawing at his throat, breath barely escaping as gasps.

"I WILL DESTROY YOU!" the younger brother shouted loudly, four white wings bursting from his back, blood and folds of skin splattering sickeningly to the walls. His hair spiked and his eyes became an unholy crimson, lips stained plum with fangs protruding over his them, face pulled into a mask of pure rage. A lance manifested into his hands, black as night that shined like obsidian in the meek blue lights.

**Release of Restrictions at 100% - Confirmed**

The air began to crackle and walls groan as vicious currents of electricity surged through them, the entire grid from within the Mines shuttering off for a moment before surging back on again.

"_We will not hold back_!" Abel cried in all his feral glory, snapping away from Cain, his body stained dark blue, tribal tattoos marring every inch of his body in radiant hues, his wings now a crackling house of electricity, bent upside down and sharply angled, not even looking like wings any longer.

The dual-sided scythes materialized in his hands with a torrent of static shocks, the electricity there sparking and crackling with sinister delight as it danced in volts all over his body.

Abel threw back his head and roared furiously into the sky, a thick column of lightning crashing through the convoluted metal and rending a gaping hole through it, allowing for the noxious fumes of the outside to seep in. Volts of lightning danced off the walls and collided into him, energy brimming to the rim and dying to be released.

Cain unleashed a salvo of deadly crimson energy towards Abel, the darker Crusnik narrowly dodging it and countering with a volley of lightning in turn. Both flew towards each other in a rush of air that swirled throughout the narrow room, blasting away the feeble exhaust fumes. They grappled together fiercely, talons locked together, forcing energy through their bodies that met only with a wall of energy in equilibrium with the other.

The younger grit his teeth and lashed out with a sharpened white wing, barely grazing past Abel's flank, the older Crusnik leaping back to avoid it.

Abel took hold of his dual-ended scythe and charged towards Cain, their weapons in a deadlock as they struck together, electricity and sonic booms resonating throughout the room with conflicting and chaotic sounds. They both surged back in unison, rekindling their power through their weapons and concentrating it in a beam that blasting together, a build up like cauterized metals slopping from the contact points of their beams with a hiss of heat.

Abel glanced wildly throughout the room, looking for something to use against his brother. His mouth rose in a toothy leer as he came up with something. He blasted energy throughout the floor, sparks of energy violently igniting the ground in white heat, causing Cain to flinch slightly as the younger lost focus and flapped his wings to avoid the danger of the floor.

Eying the gaping mouth of the ceiling, Cain feinted from another blast from Abel, the electricity missing and ricocheting back into Abel's body to be harmlessly reabsorbed. A ring of dust floated around as Cain slipped through, the flapping of his wings in the dissonance.

Abel tensed to launch himself through, then stopped, glancing over at the sleeping form of Esther.

The young girl never looked so beautiful and radiant. Her skin was a luminous pale, her red hair shining like metallic strands in the pouring artificial lights, hands clasped together like the elegant dead. He walked over to her, falling to his knees, a smile forming on his face.

"_Esther_," he rasped in a growl, leaning against the glass, pressing his face to its coolness. He sighed, seemingly relaxed, for the first time in days. Now, he was so close to his beloved, no harsh words to be exchanged between them, no dire blows or fearful tears.

A hand traced the outline of her face, and his lips grazed hers, touching only the surface of the glass.

"_I'll be back for you, I swear_," Abel vowed, rising from his place, centering himself before the opening, flexing his wings. With one, final, melancholy smile, he took off in pursuit of his brother.

* * *

><p>Cain was waiting for him high above, flapping his wings occasionally to keep him in his place. His expression contorted devilishly as Abel rapidly approached, the elder readying his scythe as he careened towards the younger.<p>

They locked themselves in deadly combat for what seemed to be an eternity, lance deflecting scythe and scythe parrying lance. Abel clawed at Cain, both ensued in a snarling exchange of claws and brunt blows to the other, drawing blood that wept to the earth before sealing their wounds quickly.

Abel shoved him away, Cain reeling before flapping his wings to right himself, gusts of wind billowing through his hair and feathers with a mighty roar.

"_I will kill you_!" Cain snarled, beginning to gather a sphere of energy within his friends, it flickering off his features as a malicious smile spread across them. He flew high above, Abel reduced to staring as he plunged the mass into the elder's back, Abel gasping from pain as the sphere met skin and created an avulsion of flesh, muscles and sinew twisting sickly with whorls of blood spitting from the wound.

The force of it sent them plummeting to the ground, wind whining as it rushed past them, Cain leering at Abel with a twist of victory on his lips.

A piercing cry of an eagle rocked the air as a buffet of feathers and a hard mass charged and slammed into Cain, displacing him, allowing time for Abel to recover mid-fall.

The griffin he'd met earlier righted herself as she balanced herself next to him, matching gazes with a look of understanding. "Why are you here?" Abel asked incredulously, eyes and mouth agape in bewilderment.

"I couldn't leave you be. You're the first person I've met in so long who wasn't horrified of me, who understood me. It will be impossible for me to become the way I once was... I wish to sacrifice myself for the good of those I once sought to destroy. I never hated the Terrans... I see eye to eye with you, Tovarish," she said with a note of sadness.

"You don't have to do this. You could escape," Abel proffered, eying the small space far above with a touch of anxiety.

The griffin bowed its head, eyes fixed on the industrial expanse below, the billowing smoke floating high above. "My family has been turned as well. None of us were born to be this way, and I want to die remembering that which I once was, not what I have become. None of them remember themselves...it's too painful to bear! Please, tell me of how I might help you!" the griffin desperately pleaded.

"_We need blood_," Abel's inner self crackled, eyes blazing crimson as the sound of pulsating blood intensified in his ears.

The griffin nodded, closing her eyes and relinquishing herself to his embrace. Her wings drooped and Abel took her in his arms, letting his power keep them aloft.

"I'm sorry that your life has come to this," Abel apologized, rustling past feathers as his fangs brushed by skin like goose-flesh, gently piercing through. The griffin shuddered as she became like a dead weight, relaxing in death's embrace.

"No...I'm sorry that you've been through so much pain. I can only...imagine... Perhaps, for once, I can do something right after the terror I've imposed upon so many Terrans..." Abel wasn't surprised to hear this. Many of the Methuselah here had come from those bent on destroying the humans, only to have their blind allegiance end in total darkness as beasts at the whims of a madman.

"Rest in peace," Abel whispered, subtly licking his lips after draining the last of her blood.

The griffin's beak lolled open, and her head dipped back, eyes rolling into her skull.

_We needed her sacrifice. A proud and noble Methuselah this one was._

Cain shrieked bloody murder as he rocketed towards Abel, completely barreling into the Crusnik as he was caught off guard. Abel cried out wildly as he lost his balance, the body of the griffin loosening from his grasp and free falling beyond his notice.

The body began shedding feathers at an incredible rate, fluttering lightly at a wide swath beyond, blanketing the sky in a cloak of millions of feathers. They finally molted their last, revealing the body of a beautiful woman with lustrous blonde hair as she plummeted to the earth, then disappearing into nothingness as a stream of ash, the last of her Methuselah form.

Abel felt an even stronger charge than he thought possible build within him, and he focused on the energy, feeling it swell within. He glared at Cain who seemed completely unperturbed, the younger grinning wickedly.

The younger charged towards Abel, the older then unleashing the blow that roared in defiance to Cain's power, hitting him with the full brunt of it.

Cain received it in full, it binding him to the core as it surrounded and surged through him in a bright flash of light, disabling him to the point of him starting to free fall to earth, the attack's hold constricting use of his body.

Abel dove after Cain, the noxious air screaming and the scenery blurring in a whiplash of speed as he did, the younger suddenly banking to the left. Both flew after the other, dodging and blasting attacks towards the other as they dizzily spun through the air and between nooks and crannies between the buildings. Abel narrowly avoided being swiped by a jutting spire, eyes so intensely locked to Cain's that reality seemed inconsequential.

Cain lashed his lance out at Abel, missing but digging into a skyscraper's cap, a rippling and crumbling sounding as it rumbled free of its foundations, beginning to rain around them as large pieces of stone and shrapnel, a deafening groan shattering the air. Both dove into the chaos and the fray of colliding stones and remnants of the building, using the larger ones as platforms for their ceaseless battle.

They stood on one as it nosed downwards, their weapons exchanging heated blows and cool counter-strikes, both defending and attacking with inhuman fervor. Abel feinted and sliced through their temporary battle grounds, the screech of metal kissing the sparks from his blades as he did so.

"Do you honestly think that you'll win her or the survival of your precious Terrans?" Cain said in singsong as they clashed together.

"You will do them no harm!" Abel hissed, a rook of lightning wailing through Cain's weapon and into the younger's body.

Cain merely pulled back his lips in a wolfish snarl, no longer bearing the countenance of a pure angel beloved that had deceived countless victims to do his bidding. "I'll gladly bury you in Lilith's grave!" Cain snarled in turn, the retort of red consuming Abel's body in flashes of heat.

"_Contra Mundi, you sadden me greatly_."

Cain became shocked, then his eyes glazed over with a blackness like coals. "_It's been too long, old friend_."

Their battle stilled as their true visages broke free and took control, no longer in the hands of the meddling humans that composed their dominant forms.

"_We were one once, but something changed_," Crusnik 02 despaired, hovering above a floating wreckage of stone, time paused from the battle as well.

"_It was simply a break in ideals, my dear fool. You, from existence, were meant to crave the solace of human company. It is why your Shadow will remain human even upon being granted special powers while mine must always be Methuselah. You loved the Terrans too much, just as your foolish host does_."

"_Am I really the fool? I've tried again and again to convince you otherwise, that they can co-exist. You simply refuse to see the truth that I have_."

Crusnik 01 chuckled darkly. "_It seems more likely to me that we were designed with such differences from the beginning... Terrans and Methuselah were all cut from the same cloth, yet they assert themselves as being so different, like you and I. Perhaps, it is meant to be this way_."

"_Although they deny it, they crave this opposition, this clashing that pushes them to excel. Just as you and I fight, we lust for the power to make us stronger. Of our amusing war with each other, who shall emerge the victor today?_" Crusnik 02 asked with a slight tilt of his head, arms folded in question.

"_You have only a day after this to live, my brother. It would be a great sadness indeed if you were to perish completely. Win this battle, Crusnik 02, and mate with your human. Then, next time, we shall meet on the battlefield as we always have, as we always will_," Crusnik 01 said with a nostalgic gaze trained upon Crusnik 02.

There was a sudden return to reality as Cain and Abel were jarred back into it, a hail of pebbles and stone falling remorselessly into a terrific clash of sound as the rubble heaped to the earth, echoing cavernously, massive plumes of dust and smoke permeating into the air.

The momentary, dreamy respite was ended and they clashed again and again, reduced to brute force as they both felt weakened from tremendous expenditure of their strength, clawing and snatching and scratching, biting and tearing, crashing and clashing. The brothers kept up at it for long stretches of time, already their battle wearing at the fragile lapse of the day.

They flew through every corner, it reducing to a desperate struggle, they grappling and wrestling with each other mid-air and on the tops of skyscrapers, finding themselves once again it the place where they had begun.

They made one final charge at each other, their weapons long forgotten, but Cain collapsed to the floor, feeling much weaker than he should've. His wings collapsed around him, his breath straggling from his throat.

"What...is happening?" Cain demanded on himself and maybe Abel, feeling the life drain out of him at a deathly pace, seeming to tear itself away from his grasp. Both of their Crusnik forms melted away, only Abel doing so voluntarily.

Abel walked with a threatening stride towards Cain, the hunkered over twin feebly rising with what of his rapidly draining strength he had left, meeting Abel's glower weakly.

The older crouched down, grabbing Cain by his neck and hauling him up to his feet and then into the air, his expression fierce. "I have every reason to kill you and bury you within the depths of hell," Abel spat, jerking his younger brother closer, the younger barely flinching, a cheek turned out of spite.

Then, his visage notably softened, lowering Cain to his feet. "But, I can't. There's something inside me that can't bring me to kill you, my own brother...the one who murdered her."

He dropped Cain to his feet, the younger doing so in a heap with a groan. Abel turned towards Esther's sleeping form, all anger visibly melting away.

Abel felt Cain cling to the hem of his robes, he smiling in placation, utterly pathetic and weak. "What are you going to do? All I've worked for...I will commence this war whether you are dead or not!"

Abel smiled coldly, his eyes venomous to Cain. "I've already thought of that well ahead of time. You see, I commandeered the Mines for a very long time and I know much more of it than you seem to. I've rigged the ceilings over every inch to collapse and expose the underlying framework of the supporting grid. It's still daylight outside. The sun will pour through and destroy each and every one of your creations. It seems to me that your tidings of war will be kept at bay."

Cain lost his grip on Abel, bringing his hands to his face like a mourning woman. "You...how could you? HOW COULD YOU?" the pathetic one wailed, sobbing dramatically into his arms. "I wanted to cleanse this world...to free it of its cruelties, but now, you..."

"Oh, what I don't eradicate here, now, the Vatican and the Empire have agreed on a joint venture to collaborate on the downfall of your plan. As we speak, every corner of Europa poisoned by your machinations is being investigated and all creations are being properly disposed of. Your plan is no more," Abel responded, face turned towards the sky as sunlight suddenly started streaming in, the haunting screams of former Methuselah filling the air with an atmosphere of dread.

Cain's eyes filled with more melodramatic tears, his actions becoming womanish and even more pathetic. Abel pitied him, but not enough. "What will I do now, brother? My life has been reduced to this... My beautiful plan has—"

"Go, and never return to this place or anywhere else that I may tread. Because the next time we meet, it will be as mortal enemies, as it will be for all of eternity," Abel cursed in a husky, dangerous low. He pierced Cain with a poisonous glare, the younger shirking back before spreading his wings and bursting into the sky with a tremendous force, dust raining after his assault on the victorious peace.

Abel wrenched his gaze from the heavenly beams of light above, settling it with profound relief upon Esther. He raced to her capsule where he dazedly pressed the correct combination on the keyboard, a hiss sounding as the shield slid away to reveal the ethereal form of his recumbent love.

"Esther," Abel cried, his hardened exterior softened for good, a smile of relief spanning his face. He hurriedly bent down, gingerly stroking the side of a cheek, then cupping it.

He seized her in his arms, the unconscious girl making no move to awaken. Abel could sense that it wasn't permanent, nor was it from mind control. It was simply Esther sleeping, and that fact elated him more than anything.

What made him enraptured even more was that everything was now over, and now he could take her back, hopefully to be with him...

And yet, he didn't know how she felt about him. That troubled him greatly, for he had only a day to live until he had to find someone who would produce a successor. One day until death either took him or let fate sweep him from it.

Right now, it truly didn't matter. Here and now was Esther, and his world was hers for as long as the moment persisted.

He sighed.

If he should die, at least he might be able to do so in happiness.

* * *

><p>Last thoughts: HOLY CRAP. Only one more chapter to go! Are you kindasortareally excited? I know that I am! AbelxEsther FTW!<p>

For those of you concerned with the use of their fully activated forms, it's a little obvious that I detracted from the anime quite a bit. Why? Because, I didn't agree 100 percent with how they carried it out. I won't go into major detail, but they left out so MUCH in terms of important plot details that should've been there. There were tons of inconsistencies, and many more deviations from the manga which I revere as truth above the anime. Abel in the anime seems to be much colder towards Esther, and too much time is spent on making the episodes as pretty as possible without really getting a true story fleshed out. What pissed me off the MOST was the last episode. I HATED it. Abel and Cain's battle was too much of a light show and it ended with a gaping hole in the plot. Suddenly, Ion and Abel go off to fight Cain again? What happened? How did the battle end? WTF?

If you don't like the idea of Abel being activated without going insane, my interpretation is as follows: in times of great need, I'm sure that the UN scientists wanted their test subjects to be able to defend themselves at full power, right? So, I kinda inserted the plot bunny of Abel and Cain having deeper consciousnesses (the nanomachines merhaps?) that can subtly control them if need be and take over, or act like consciences that can guide them every which way and also act like a gauge to internal statuses. This way, they can activate at full power, although Cain's host (one half of a once full being) seems to have reduced Cain into insanity, if you will. They're yin and yang, in essence.

Also, the battle is how I imagined Cain and Abel's to have happened. ...Of course, with some love-trianglin' thrown in~ (This is a shoutout for the CainxEstherxAbel comm here on ffnet!) Because, in all honesty, the anime made me want to murder a bunny it was so bad. Really, this fanfic is more of how I would've wanted the anime to pan out, by being more loyal to the manga, with some improv'd plot and concepts thrown in for fanfiction's sake. Esther was way too weak in the anime, and yet really forthwith enough in the manga to be extremely likable. Basically, the manga owns the anime in all respects...except maybe the CG'd scenery porn. Everything else makes me kinda cringe...everything could've been good, but the plot, direction, and pacing was absolute shit. Those are my only qualms. If they would've remained true to the manga, I wouldn't be ranting right now...sorry about that.

With all love and respect to Yoshida-sensei, I love this series to death. Except the anime. It was horrible.

Errr...

~Peace, G.


	7. Farewell to the Sorrows

As Is

_Farewell to the Sorrows_

(Warnings: Light smut, a bun in the oven, a wedding, a happy ending~...In that order~!)

* * *

><p>Soft trickles of light cascaded through light satin curtains, sounds of movements on carpet rousing her awake. Esther squinted, the light not even harsh, but it still hurt slightly after being asleep for so long.<p>

"I'm glad to see that you're awake," a kind male voice, greeted, sounding close as she let her eyes focus.

A damp washcloth dabbed her forehead, but was immediately removed when Esther forced herself to sit up, her body stiff and sore all over.

Abel Nightroad was sitting in a small stool, looking tired and yet peaceful. When their eyes met, a sharp pain filled Esther's mind as the last few months poured through her mind to fill her with what had happened, and what she'd done.

She began to tremble and cry, tears pouring from her eyes. "F-Father, what have I done to you?" her voice quavered, tears cascading instantly down her cheeks. She remembered shooting Abel, fighting him, the venomous return to the Vatican, the declaration of hatred against him, partnering herself with Dietrich and weaving conspiracies with him that made her shudder to her core. All of it was met with reality and because of it she wept.

"Now, now, it's all over now. You were being possessed by my brother, but you resisted and freed yourself. It takes a rare kind of strength to be able to do that, Esther," Abel praised lightly, acting like the serious man she knew him for. But, what his seriousness was directed at concerned her.

"Father, do you realize the implications of my actions? I conspired with the enemy, and committed treason against the Vatican! I deserve to be arrested!" Esther cried, her tears drying up into a stillness of fear.

"We'll speak of this later, Esther. I'm taking us somewhere to be alone. I know that you'll have questions, but right now I can't answer them. It'll only be another hour. Rest, and then you may ask me whatever you like." With that Abel left the room, the door _shwooshing _shut behind.

Esther's heart raced into her throat, and fear began to climb into and claim her mind.

At this point in time, she could only clasp her hands together and pray.

* * *

><p>In the hour that she'd been given Esther had dressed quickly, having put on a simple travel dress much like the one she'd worn before their mission two months before. Her heart clenched guiltily, remembering that it had all began with her falling prey to Stella's seductions to her petty little problems. She knew better than to think that Cain's plan had been centered around her, but her participation in it had made it that much harder for Abel.<p>

She still felt the same as before, completely uncertain as to Abel's feelings for her. When he'd spoken, he'd sounded sad and disappointed, but also detached like his mind was elsewhere. She could imagine why. Abel had spent the past two months fighting his heart out to maintain the balance of the world, and when he'd rescued her and foiled the last of Cain's dreams of war with nightmares of peace, she must've only been a hindrance to him. As far as she was concerned, they were most likely on an airship returning to the Vatican where they would part ways for good.

After all, if she were him, she'd do the same for someone as much of a burden as she was.

Esther walked over to the small room's window and brushed away a curtain, pressing her forehead to the cool glass, watching as a sea of clouds drifted by, the languid ormnithopter beating its wings slowly, the lonely expanse of unprotected sky rising aloft into an unexplored distance. Suddenly, she felt a creaking and buckling of inner mechanisms as the airship began to slowly descend.

Startled, she pulled the curtains closed in haste, her heart hammering in her throat. She noticed in alarm as a creaking metal shield enclosed the window, reducing the room to the one light dangling from its sconce above, making her feel like a prisoner condemned to death.

She steeled herself, feeling like how she did when she and Sherah had defied both the empire and the Vatican in order to save her comrades. No matter what would happen, whether it was excommunication from the church or imprisonment, she would remain as strong as Sherah had been.

The door opened and Abel was waiting, his face unnervingly solemn as he stood before her, motioning with a hand for her to come to him. She did, and she felt slightly shocked as he tied a blindfold over her eyes.

"We'll be entering an undisclosed location that must remain secret. I'm afraid that you'll have to bear with me until we arrive to where we need to be." She nodded, unresistant to his demands.

She smiled sadly. "I'm going to face severe consequences for my actions, isn't that so? I suppose it's inevitable considering that I assisted the enemy, controlled by him or not. Father, I just wanted to let you know that no matter what happens, you did your duty where I failed. You'll always be a dear friend to me."

"Is that so," he responded in monotone.

A hand to her back led her through winding halls and mazes, putting complete faith in the one who led her. She felt so at peace, knowing that Cain's plan had been foiled and that peace might finally be achieved with him out of the way. No matter what her fate would come to, that single fact filled her with a sense of unrelenting peace.

She heard as a loud hatch became disengaged, lowering shakily to the ground. Both she and Abel, knowing fully that it was him leading her, descended it, somewhat surprised when her footsteps crunched over grass.

It was most likely the Vatican lawns since they must've rushed to prepare a trial upon her capture. By the tint staining the blindfold, she surmised that it was sunset.

Both of them stopped as the dissonance of the ormnithoper thumped away, soon completely alone wherever they were. Gentle fingers unknotted the blindfold, Esther completely shocked as to what lay before her.

It wasn't the grand facade of the Vatican or even St. Peter's Square. It was a lush field crowned with an endless blanket of tall sweet grasses that filled her senses with unerring comfort and serenity. Supple blooms of wildflowers sprouted intermittently, adding to the delicate spring fragrances, the late June air slipping into the warmth of summer. A tall ring of broad leaf trees brimmed over the field in a soothing embrace, each topped by golden leaves aflame in the setting sun. Each leaf was ablaze with the light of the late day, motes of dust and pollen catching the light like tender stars. The sky was ablaze with gold from the sun, a halo of beamed light split by every tree, sinking to sleep in a bed of nature. The sunset was soon being hushed by clouds in multitudes of warm and cool colors, sending Esther into a feeling of nirvana.

Esther wandered around in delirium, her mind reeling.

She came before Abel, the man silent as she spoke, "Father, I thought that I was going to be arrested and sent to trial. This isn't—"

He seized her in his arms, holding her so tightly she thought that she might suffocate. "Nothing of the sort will befall you, Esther," Abel said in a sweet whisper, cloaking her within his warm embrace.

"Then what am I doing here, Father?" she asked incredulously, her eyes filled with innocent bewilderment as she gazed up at him.

He brought them both to the ground, Esther sinking beside him. "I haven't been entirely truthful with you, Esther. There's something very important that I've been keeping from you."

Esther clenched some of the grass, nearly ripping it out.

"The real reason I've been so secretive is that I've only this evening and tomorrow to live. I will die unless I find a mate, the Crusnik's Shadow, and produce a child through her that will inherit Crusnik genealogy, and become the same as me. This woman needs to be someone that I love, otherwise it will fail and tomorrow will be my last day upon this earth. The mission truly put me into dire straits, Esther. For the last two months, as I approached my Millennium, I was charged with fighting Cain who was preparing to force both sides into war. And because of completing it in its totality only as of yesterday, the urgency of this mission eclipsing my need to find a Shadow, I couldn't find the time to properly prepare this woman," Abel explained, eyes watching the fireflies drift beautifully through the taller jade grasses.

The truth as he spoke it weighed upon her shoulders word by word, filling her heart with more dread then anything she'd thought she'd ever face. Abel was going to die...and the woman he loved was dead. Now there was no one. But, she couldn't let it hang like this. She had to tell him before it was too late.

Esther hung her head, completely averting Abel, scooting away from him as she began to speak in an inaudible voice. "I haven't been entirely honest either, Father," she began, heart throbbing into her throat. "The real reason Stella was able to win me over and then control me was because of you...because of my feelings for you. I-I know that this isn't my place to speak, but please, if you and I can only be here together now, then I have to say this... I'm...in love with you, Father. I've been this way for awhile. But, I know that you still love Lilith. I'm pathetic for feeling this way, and when Stella made me realize how much I bother and hinder you...I saw the light of truth. You'll always love Lilith above every other woman who might have feelings for you... And your Shadow...I'm sure Lady Sforza could fill that role. I know that by how she looks at you and..."

"I don't want Caterina as my Shadow, Esther."

Esther immediately raised her head, protesting, "But, Lilith is gone! What will you—"

Abel raised himself on all fours, nearing inexorably close to Esther, they face to face. "I don't want Caterina or even Lilith, Esther. I've loved you for so long now that you're the one I want. And hearing you reciprocate my feelings makes me the happiest man in the world," he said softly, like the warm and fragrant breeze wafting through his bangs delicately.

"You do?" Esther squeaked, feeling a searing heat rise within her. Abel advanced over her, their faces exceedingly close, Esther barely propped on her elbows.

"I love you, Esther Blanchett, Star of Istvan," he murmured, finally closing the gap between their lips with a tender kiss, his eyes sinking closed while hers remained wide.

"Father...I love you, too..." Esther finally said as they drew apart, Abel smiling softly and chuckling to himself.

"It's somewhat hard to believe that you fell for me when you've made it very clear that you find me annoying," Abel chuckled, both finally resting on the ground, his cheek resting against her bosom.

Esther flushed and looked away, trying hard not to look him in the eye. "No, I actually think that you're pretty cute when you act that way..." she admitted with whispered reluctance.

She felt him smile. "That makes me incredibly glad." A pregnant spell of silence spanned between them, the air growing somewhat tense despite its laden warmth.

"Esther, I'm sorry, but time is running out. I'm afraid that we have to...before it's too late," Abel urged with a slight blush to his cheeks, rising, sliding his glasses up his nose as they had fallen slightly.

He pulled Esther into his lap, blanketing her once more and resting his chin on her head. She held his hands, feeling smaller then ever in his embrace. "...You want me to create a life with you, right? And if I don't, you'll die..."

"Yes," Abel confirmed in a strained voice, "but you're still only seventeen, still so young."

"I love you, Father...I'll do anything for you..." Esther promised.

He let her off, she sitting before him. His eyes seemed to melt warmly as he smiled endearingly at her. Abel bent forward to whisper in her ear, "Do what you want, Esther."

Abel released her and closed his eyes, letting Esther do as she willed. As he he sat motionless, she stroked a hand over his face, lingering at his lips, trailing down to his collar. She timidly unhooked his cassock, the man shrugging it off his shoulders to the ground in a heap. She slowly undid belts at his waist, setting them aside, returning to his over-tunic that she unzipped, seeing a peek of his naked flesh beneath, Abel opening his eyes as he stripped it off, left to his pants.

Esther stopped, rising up to kiss his lips hesitantly, creeping lower towards his neck, then reaching his chest where she stopped over his heart. She noticed with a heart fluttering in apprehension the sinking sun as it neared nightfall, barely a sliver of light left.

"It's almost night, Father," she told him, he merely smiling kindly in turn.

"Don't worry; I'll protect you if anything happens," he whispered reassuringly, gladly kissing her. "There's nothing that you need to worry about."

Abel took his turn in topping her, Esther's vision slightly blinded from the lack of sunlight, a rich chorus of grasshoppers playing the melody of summer the fireflies danced lightly along to, drifting through their love-making with occasional jumps of light that illuminated the older man's giddy face.

"Don't worry, I'll be gentle," he reassured with a teasing kiss to her cheek.

She couldn't think twice as Abel's hand crept up her thigh, lingering over every contour, encountering a slew on tingling flesh unused to a romantic touch. Esther's breath hitched as he gently groped her breasts, seeming to savor the moment with a little bit too much fervor for her liking. His long hair became undone as she undid the ribbon, waves of long silver hair like starlight spilled over his shoulders and all around them. Abel lowered himself his kiss her intensely, tongue snaking into her mouth, met with meager resistance.

She barely comprehended as Abel slipped the dress over her head, moving to her bra and panties, soon reduced to nothing but bare skin. She shivered beneath his bare form, foreign sensations riddling her body.

"I'll be gentle," a voice hushed, seeming to have a profound effect on her body that relaxed as his warm form molded to hers.

Suddenly, she felt something pierce inside of her, she gasping as it dug deeper and deeper into her core. She felt her mind taken up into dizzying heights as it was riddled it like a drug, searing her through the heat of hell with pleasure like heaven. She felt a new connection tied taut within him, becoming as one. Kisses rained down upon her face and body, their limbs entwining, everything becoming like a crystalline existence.

She tossed back her head and gasped as they climaxed together, breaking their fleeting yet inseperable bond at last. Tears built up in her eyes, but she forced herself to hold them back, swallowing down the lump in her throat.

"Esther, are you alright?" Abel asked with tender concern, his eyes shining and sparkling as a firefly drifted in between them.

She nodded her head determinedly, Abel smiling as he kissed her.

Esther pushed herself from under Abel and fumbled around for her undergarments and dress, putting them on as quickly as possible. She heard the distant zip of Abel dressing himself as well, peeking shyly over to him.

She squeaked as she felt his arms encircle her, the familiar cassock draped over his shoulders. "Should I be concerned by your shyness?" he asked teasingly, she falling reluctantly into his lap.

"You're my first time! What, am I supposed to be jumping for joy?" she snapped, simmering like her old self again. Abel chuckled but continued holding her, Esther only pouted childishly, mouth clamped shut. Abel chuckled at her return to herself, feeling as if nothing had changed between them despite her new status as his Shadow.

"I have good news you might like to hear, Esther," he said enticingly, the girl's anger melting away into curiosity.

She craned her head up at the taller man. "What is it?" she asked insistently, so much like a child.

He pulled her a little closer, she now buried within him. "My Crusnik informed me that everything was successful. It seems that I'll be alive for millennium to come, thanks to you. And...you may be receiving some very good news of your own within a few days or weeks," he whispered with a quiet smile alighting to his face, kissing the back of her head.

"I'll be a mother soon, won't I? And you'll be the father..." Esther's head slightly hurt at the thought. In less than twenty-four hours she went from complete uncertainty over her future with the Vatican and Abel to becoming his lover and the future mother of his child.

"Yes, you will. And you'll be the prettiest mommy in the world," Abel sighed, hands coming to rest on her lower abdomen, on what would be the womb for a child.

Their child, she realized with trepidation.

* * *

><p>"Esther! Is it really true?" Ion Fortuna called with desperation as Esther turned to look at him, the Methuselah and Shadow taking a stroll through the Vatican gardens at night over a week later.<p>

The past week and a half had been extremely busy. Because of the success of Abel's mission, the man had risen in the ranks of AX and was called on a mission to throughly inspect the sabotaged bases Cain had created months before as part of a plan that had fallen into complete ruin. In doing so, he'd been summoned in the early morning after _that night_ to fulfill the last leg of the inspections collaborated upon by the Empire and the Vatican in conjunction. It'd been over a week since she'd seen Abel, but she felt alienated from him despite their newfound relationship. The reality of their stations, a man of action and a lady-saint, made her feel as though nothing had really changed, and that they were back to where they'd started. And lately, she'd begun to feel extremely run down with the burgeoning of new duties.

While Caterina assured her that there was no way that she could be charged for treason, her kidnapping (as the Vatican had rehashed the past few months to the public) into Cain's clutches had terribly shaken many within the congregation and beyond, her life now reduced to a guarded, sandbox existence. Even the pope had managed to work up the courage to mandate an order for her continual protection and surveillance by friends and strongarms. It made her already hectic life even more busy, rumors of a European tour for religious resurgences in the works.

Esther gazed at Ion with a tired kindness in her eyes for her dear friend, smiling brightly. "So what have you heard, Ion? If it's about the religious tour, it seems to just be a rumor at the moment."

Ion came to her side, taking the bouquet of flowers Esther had been gathering from her hands, cradling them in an arm. "When I was speaking with Lady Sforza on the progress of her most recent mission undertaken by AX, she asked if I'd be seeing you this evening. When I said yes, she requested me to tell you that Father Nightroad has been annoying her with calls concerning you several times a day and she wants you to finally call him since I guess you haven't. What's going on, Esther?" he asked, standing by his friend.

Esther peeked over his shoulder at Father Tres who was standing nearby as a sentinel, watching her every movement with a stiff eye. She glanced back at Ion. "Let's go over to the gazebo overlooking the lake. That way Father Tres won't see or hear us," she smiled sneakily, causing Ion to blush at her cuteness.

Ion let her take an arm like a gentleman, both of them walking a short distance to the gazebo overlooking the lake, a quiet mirror to the sky overhead lit brightly with stars like diamonds and a crescent moon like a Cheshire's smile.

They sat on the benches interwoven in the small gazebo, peacefully gazing out on the moonlit lake smooth as mercury.

"You're wearing a ring, Esther," Ion observed slyly, seated next to her and giving her an expectant look.

"I have a lot to tell you, don't I?" Esther sighed, smoothing out some crinkles on the seat of her habit. Ion was leaning against one of the supports of the wiry gazebo, glancing away apprehensively.

"You don't have much too tell me, Esther, to be honest. Lady Sforza told me everything... You just looked so tired and alone that I thought maybe talking will help you," Ion confessed, cheeks flushed in shame under the light of a small lamp post.

"He never told me anything when he left, but when I woke up, I had this ring around my finger. I guess it means that he proposed," Esther figured, smiling as she gazed out at the moon with a twinge of sadness tugging at her heart.

"He's been calling you to ask about you...and the baby, hasn't he?" Ion asked gingerly, they matching eyes.

Tears began to prick at the corners of her eyes, but she fought them back. "F-Father Tres told me when I woke up this m-morning that his sensors picked up signs of i-imperceptible life inside of me... He told me that...I'm pregnant..." Esther bit back a sob, breathing deeply to hold it in, Ion looking increasingly concerned.

He seized her in a hug. "Don't hold back, Esther. It's okay to cry sometimes..."

"I miss him so much! I just want him here, Ion! It's unbearable without him!" Esther sobbed into her hands, breath and face consumed by a salty heat. Ion let her cry, even though it seemed that his chances with her were lost forever.

"I don't suppose I'm too late, am I? I just got back from Iceland, too! Talk about cold~" a familiar voice she longed for cut through, Esther rising to meet a sheepish smile and a man coated with comedic piles of snow.

"Father!" she cried, breaking from Ion's arms and rushing into Abel's waiting ones, the force nearly sending him to the ground. She squeezed tightly, surprising even Abel.

"I heard everything," he said quietly, kissing the crown of her head. "Were you alright when I was away?'

"She's been really tired. They won't seem to cut back on her work, and she's had virtually no privacy. I've been with her these past few weeks, in the night time mostly. She's been made to stay up, the whole works. I've helped her when I can, but most of it is way beyond me. Not even Lady Sforza could mediate and lighten her load. ...The baby must be taking a lot out of her, too," Ion meekly added, watching them with conflicted emotions despite the smile painted on his lips.

"Thank you for being there for her, Ion. You have no idea how much that means to me," Abel said gratefully. "It must be hard being away from the Empire for so long, though."

Ion simply shrugged, propping his arms behind his neck like a kid. "I would do it if only she'd ask. She my best friend, you know," he pointed out. "Oh, um, congratulations to the both of you on your baby. The Empress herself relayed a message to me that she wants to see Esther as soon as possible when I told her this afternoon. She misses you, too, Abel."

"I'm sure she does. I would gladly call her, but right now this one needs me," he said apologetically, gently lifting Esther in his arms.

"I'm fine! I can walk!" Esther insisted, struggling slightly. Abel just held her more tightly, grinning smugly.

"Oh, come on, Esther! We're almost husband and wife, so why not loosen up a little? Besides, I've been terribly lonely without you..." Abel pouted cutely, making Esther look away in embarrassment.

When those words processed through her mind, she snapped back to attention. "Wait, _husband and wife?_"

Abel smiled sheepishly. "Ah, you see, I went through the trouble of arranging the wedding, and my dear sister has agreed to host it. I don't suppose you'll be busy this time next month?"

"You're having a wedding in the Empire?" Ion piped up, walking at Abel's side as they returned within the Vatican towards personal quarters of personnel.

"Yes, you see, since Esther became my Shadow and we both love each other, it seems only sensible, especially since she's the mother of my child," he determined with hamster-like satisfaction.

"Our child," someone corrected softly.

Abel glanced down, a bemused expression on his face. "Come again?"

"Abel..." his name used with extreme reluctance "this child wasn't born out of necessity. Like a covenant of love, children are born of mutual will. ...That's what Bishop Laura told me when I was young..." Esther interjected quietly, dipping her head.

"That's right, isn't it? Our child..." Abel sighed, nuzzling into Esther's hair.

"Hey, come to think of it, you're a thousand years old, aren't you?" Ion's childish voice loudly questioned, spoiling their intimate moment. "That's...kinda a REALLY big age difference.

"Oh, come on now! Age is only a number!" Abel loudly protested. "There's nothing wrong with the fact that Esther looks...like _a severely tempting and beautiful _young lady..." Abel gulped, his hole halfway dug.

Esther was too smothered by a blush to respond, a growing smirk spreading on Ion's face. "I mean, at least I look to be about Esther's age. You look as if you could have at least ten years on her, even if you were Terran."

"Well now!" Abel sputtered indignantly. "Even if you were Terran, you'd be too young for her!"

Esther's face became a bemused blank and she quietly removed herself from Abel's arms, the weight of her tiredness practically weighing on her shoulders.

"Esther!" Ion sped towards Esther's side to catch her as she fell, the girl lifting herself resolutely and picking her way back through the hall.

"I'm fine. It was just a bit of vertigo. I just need to keep my window open and let the fresh air clear my head. I'll be fine by morning," she reassured, her smile and step weak. She stubbornly refused Ion and Abel as the men seemed ready to catch her if she were to fall, their every movement ready to anticipate her own.

Abel sighed and stood before her, hefting the girl over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes as if it were the norm. Ion stood stupefied as Esther lay paralyzed, barely comprehending the situation.

"Father, put her down!"

"Not on your life~"

* * *

><p>Abel and Esther had finally made it back into her room, Esther deciding to let the priest support her by shoulders as he lay her on the bed, the man resting next to her as she crawled beneath the sheets, utterly exhausted.<p>

Feeling comfortable in her cocoon of warm sheets, she couldn't help but feel disgruntled when Abel pulled her free, groaning sleepily as he pulled her into his arms.

"Don't you have a room of your own, Father?" she said with tired polity, blearily blinking as she tried to wrench herself from his arms, much too tired for romance.

"It's been over a week since you've seen me. You ran into my arms only an hour before, and you seemed to miss me terribly. I wonder why you're being so cold towards me now?" he asked, stroking a cheek with the soft underside of his hand.

She gazed up at him with sweet, innocent eyes. Then, they closed, not out of tiredness; rather, it was as if to lock out nightmares. "I'm scared, Abel. Before you spoke with me, Father Tres sat me down and made it clear that this baby probably won't grow like a normal one. ...That scares me so much. I don't know what's going to happen now."

Abel pulled her close. 'I suppose I see why you're so afraid. It's only to be expected since I myself am a monster."

Esther shot up and whacked his back somewhat harshly, a fierceness burning within her eyes. "I never said that you were a monster, and as I've told you before, I'm not afraid of you! So shut up and stop saying things like that! I'm scared because this is my first time pregnant, and no one in history has ever been in the situation that I am," she retorted strongly. "I love this child, Abel, just as much as I love you! I want both of you, but I can't help but be scared! I don't know what's going to happen, so you're going to have to deal with the fact that I'm just a human and not special like you!"

Abel sat up, a bittersweet smile on his face as he reached out to her, Esther wrapping her arms around him tightly as in defiance to his preconceptions of her feelings. "If I were scared of you, I wouldn't have been in love with you for as long as I have. You're such an idiot, Abel...' Esther murmured grudgingly into his chest.

"Agh!" Abel started, flinching away from Esther as his side started sharply. She sat up, slightly alarmed but ready like the tomboy she was, at a shot to his side.

"Where are you hurt?" she demanded, fixing his eyes with a pressing look. He placed a hand over his side, Esther noticing the bandages on the half-naked man. She didn't bother asking as she gently unwrapped them, unperturbed as she investigated malignant looking scar wounds coiled around his waist like burning chains had struck him.

"What happened?' she demanded commandingly, studying them intently.

Abel smiled sheepishly. "You see, before we left Iceland, I had quite a treacherous fall on some ice in one of the abandoned bases we'd finished up cleaning house in. And, well, this one doesn't seem to be healing as quickly as others."

Esther suddenly became very still, as if pulled into a trance. Her hand floated by its own accord over the wound, radiant blue light softly touching the wounded skin, flesh reconstructing and scars closing into new skin like a baby's. In a matter of minutes, his scars ceased to exist.

She gaped down at her work, clenching that hand into a fist as she intently studied her palm. "What was that?" she breathed, flipping it over and over yet finding no distinguishing marks.

"Ah, you see, it's one of the perks of being a Crusnik's Shadow, you gain everlasting immortality and regeneration for yourself and others that you can heal at will. As part of our investigations of the bases, we found countless research journals. One belonged to Cain himself that chronicled his experimentation on his first shadow. The one we battled, Stella, was the original clone made in Lilith's image. She was a human turned Shadow by Cain and experimented upon for centuries it seems. She had the powers mentioned, as well as living an exceptionally long life," Abel explained, touching his healed skin with child-like wonder in his eyes.

Esther's eyes narrowed. "What about his children? Were any produced?"

Abel looked down, as if an incomplete thought was all all he could say. "Much of this journal was destroyed, but a last page mentioned that all of her inconceivable eggs were harvested and fertilized by male Methuselah turned into beasts to produce clones with attributes like the original, clones in appearance and thought, but able to transform into beast forms at will like their fathers. Stella's child by Cain, as it said, was aborted..."

Esther lost all of her ferocity, slipping away into bittersweet sadness, holding her lower abdomen with detachment in her eyes. "This one might've had a cousin, then, and maybe they could've seen a different future..."

Abel placed a hand on her shoulder. "It may have been for the best. Both of them would've fought by instinct, as my brother and I have been driven to do for centuries. The world doesn't need to suffer anymore because of us, let alone our descendants. It only serves to prove Cain's true nature, even going so far as to slay innocent kin."

She fell into his arms, both melting into the warm and soft embrace of the bed. "I'll do my best to be this child's mother, Abel..."

"I know that you will, Esther... Good night..."

* * *

><p>Never before had the Empire been in such an uproar over a public event, and since the revels and the masquerading celebrations were initiated by the Empress in celebration of the success in thwarting Cain's diabolical plot, the Empire was still in the throes of celebration by the time Abel and Esther arrived at the Empress's palace.<p>

"I can't believe that it's already been almost two months since it all ended," Esther exclaimed, basking in the warm sun of the morning.

Abel followed suit, finding her hand and clasping it, bringing it to his lips and gently kissing it. Esther smiled knowingly at her husband-to-be, the other hand settling on her bare midriff, still perfectly flat despite being pregnant for over a month.

The past three weeks or so had been extraordinarily hectic. Esther, the lady-saint and new symbol of hope after the near disaster, had been inundated with more work than ever before, travelling throughout all of Italy to serve mass at many a beautiful cathedral as well as your through small provincial towns and the like doing hard humanitarian work despite her status. Luckily, the week before much of the public had been informed of her pregnancy and impending marriage to the hero of their efforts, Abel Nightroad, and it was received with international zeal and adulation from millions across the faithful world. Word had even reached the Empire where many old friends sent their congratulations. Although Esther didn't want to be in the spotlight as much as she was, in he heart of hearts she felt that the world deserved this uplifting and uniting peace, for once breaking down barriers between Methuselah and Terrans over an event that affected them all. Cain would be back, someday, and by then they would be ready.

"It's hard to believe that there's so much peace in the world. I'm not sure how long it will last, but it's nice knowing that it's even here. Ion even said that Terrans in the Empire have been much friendlier than before, and it's looking like the Empire will enjoy much more tranquility." Esther closed her eyes, letting a calm breeze ruffle through her hair. It felt strange not to wear the habit, but she'd been excused from it due to their incognito location, the place of the wedding secret from even themselves, everything left in Seth's hands.

"Cain is still out there. But, the next time we meet, I won't be fighting alone." It seemed that being a Crusnik's Shadow yielded more benefits than originally thought, such as an increase in strength, endurance, and stamina, which put her fighting prowess nearly on par with the average Methuselah. Although she could never defeat a powerful noble or other decorated battle veteran, together with Abel they made a hard-pressed duo to beat. Due to his slightly heightened rank within AX, Abel had taken the month off in order to spend as much time as possible with Esther, even going so far as to act as a personal aide, their days colored by companionship and a growing depth of their love for one another.

"Still, Seth told me that there's going to be a huge banquet! Ah, she said that there's going to be an exorbitant amount of food! I can't wait!" Abel cried in greedy anticipation, mouth salivating like a heated dog.

"What about last night's bachelor party the Duchess of Kiev dragged you out on? You got rip-roaring drunk, ate enough food for a week, and gambled away your month's salary to boot! Haven't you had enough?" Esther scolded, slapping his arm with every sentence uttered in scorn for last night's behavior.

"What about you, Ion, and Seth?" Abel meekly protested, once more looking like a kicked puppy.

Esther stopped short, her turn to fluster. "We went...shopping for baby items... Lady Caterina Sforza agreed to let me conceive the baby here, in case something goes awry. You wouldn't believe what Seth has in the works! A nursery in the palace, and a team of scientists and medical specialists of both races studying Cain's journals... It feels like too much," she admitted, hugging herself for a moment.

Abel smiled softly, coiling one of Esther's side bangs around a finger. "She's doing it because she cares. As her older brother, I am eternally grateful. I suppose that we both can be, since you're just as immortal as I am."

She gazed downwards. "I guess that means that I'll outlive all of my friends... Except for those who are Methuselah. It feels so...strange, knowing that I may one day be as old as you are now..."

"I suppose that's why you have me. You won't be going through this alone, Esther," he promised softly, gathering her into his arms.

"I know..." she replied softly, losing herself in his warmth.

* * *

><p>"Alright, just a little more lip gloss, and maybe a dash of eye shadow there. Um...curl your eyelashes here, then..." Seth murmured to herself, squinting inches away from Esther's face, dabbing a silken brush laden with some unknown powder or cream.<p>

"You don't have to do this...your Majesty," Esther vacillated, feeling bad that she had no knowledge in the application of make-up whatsoever. She felt yet another layer of gloss smothered on her lips, starting to resent its stickiness whenever she opened her mouth to speak.

"Nonsense! My future little sis has to look nice for her wedding, which is in an hour mind you, and I'm the only one who should be entrusted with such a precious task. Besides, I have a lot of experience as doing it as a part-time job. I'm literally the best in the Empire!" Seth asserted, dabbing Esther's face with the last of the odds and ends, the last of the finishing touches.

Esther grumbled under her breath, her face feeling as if it were pasted in plaster.

"Oh, it'll be over before you know it! The ceremony will only be an hour, and then the reception will be in the gardens, so you can change into whatever you like after it's all over," Seth assured, poking Esther's face with a few cotton swabs.

"Alright, all done!" Seth proclaimed, whirling the little swiveling chair before an enormous mirror that took up an entire wall.

Esther was shocked, completely taken away by what she saw. Before her was a beautiful, unearthly woman. Her eyes were large and shone like moonstone, possibly due to special contacts, ringed by long, luxuriously thick lashes. Her high cheekbones were almost severely accented, but not too much, her cheeks dusted pink that added color to her extremely pale skin. Her complexion was flawless, and her lips were at a full, tender pout, lightly colored a slightly darker pink than their natural tone.

"Is that...really me?" Esther gaped, her mind drawing a blank before she could think of anything else to say.

"I did take my time, but you're really naturally beautiful so I hardly had to do anything. What took the longest was your hair...though I probably could've finished it sooner," Seth commented, rising from her own stool to contemplate Esther like she was a finished painting.

The shortest part of her hair had been made to slightly curl in the back, bunched into wavy curls and fanned around the back of her head, her longer bangs curled into fanciful ringlets around her face and over her ears with her shorter ones swiped to the right across her forehead in a slant, cut to look edgy. Her hair had a healthy sheen to it, the color somewhat intensified by a few added dyes to even out the tone.

She stood, almost too afraid to poke a cheek or nudge her stiff hair. "Um, when we're supposed to kiss...will the make-up get in the way at all?" she asked tentatively, her lips nearly sealing together when she closed her mouth.

"Nope~ I thought everything out beforehand. The lip gloss is actually flavored so he might not want to stop," Seth added suggestively.

The younger Nightroad suddenly had her hands to Esther's back, pushing her behind a silk screen. She tore off the towel clothing the girl, revealing an expensive looking satin corset ornately beaded with pearls and diamonds in fluttery, flower-like accents. Her small panties were layered beneath a complicated garter belt that Seth literally had to talk Esther into, the modest nun never having acquainted herself with sexy lingerie before in her life.

Esther yelped as Seth wrestled the older-looking girl into her wedding dress, whirling harshly here and there, Esther having no conception at all as to what was going on.

Finished, Seth sat her down on a stool outside of the changing screen, delicately sliding on a pair of starched silk boots, they conforming to her feet and legs, made of a sheer material that revealed a hazy outline of her legs, reaching up to her knees and layered over the translucent stockings hauled up by the garter belt.

"Stand up," Seth encouraged, stepping away and letting Esther avail herself before the mirror.

The dress was a gorgeous, almost Victorian era design with many modern alterations. The tight bodice was decorated with ornate lace and gold piping along the details, lace flaring from the rims. Beneath that was a loose top that revealed ample cleavage with bell sleeves made entirely of satin, wispy, longer sleeves flowing away from it like insect's wings, sleeves _under that _pulled taut against her skin by golden accents. The waist was highly accentuated by a tight mold of starched white satin, a long skirt flaring around her body and pooling around her like an upturned rose, several symmetrical panels of curving and arcing flowers ornamenting it. The front had been cut away to reveal an inner skirt like two lily petals that peeked up her thigh, just barely concealing the necessary bits. Her legs were fully exposed, the long stretch of them easily showcasing the parts of the garterbelt and translucent thigh-stockings, down to her knee-high boots that easily elevated her at least six inches.

Seth stood on one of the stools and nestled a delicate tiara weaved with silver and gold, diamonds and moonstones accenting it where it would, like jewelry pulled from the heart of nature. A long veil spilled behind that she could see settled to her waist, a good precaution considering the nature of her dress.

Esther stared transfixed at the stern looking, absolutely ethereal woman staring back, almost expecting her to jump out and wring her neck she looked so hostile. Smiling looked ridiculous as she tried to look pleasant, hoping that Seth was too busy fussing over last minute details to catch the older teen making strange faces to herself in the mirror.

She sighed, settling for the hostile look from before. It looked kind of regal, if not slightly conceited. It really was the only look that Seth seemed to approve of, anyway.

"What do you think?" Seth asked, fluffing up the veil to give it a little boost.

Esther smiled warmly down at the youngest Crusnik. "It's absolutely beautiful, Seth. Everything is just too perfect," she proclaimed rather softly, feeling somewhat choked up, ready to swoop over and glomp the girl.

"Ah, ah, agh!" Seth yelped, freezing oddly as she jumped out of Esther's reach, 'x'-ing her arms at the Shadow.

"Don't. Ruin. Anything," she warned, tsking irately as she fixed little details Esther failed to catch. "You know what? Just walk and hold your bouquet. Don't do anything else unless you're asked to. From here on out, you're a doll that can walk. Alright?"

Esther nodded in a restrained way, holding herself...like a doll.

Seth huffed finally, walking from beyond Esther's line of sight to fetch the bouquet. It was a beautiful, flawless arrangement of Gardenia, Moonflower, night-blooming Jasmine, and Evening Primrose at the center, Blue Star Ambosia accenting it with cascades of baby's breath dangling over the rim.

"Those flowers bloom only at night, like how the Methuselah live in the world of darkness...and they reminded me of my brother. The blue star ambosia made me think of you, and it's centered just a little bit from the middle, like how you're his Shadow. And the baby's breath for the little one growing inside you, who will make your life spill over with happiness," Seth explained softly before handing off the bouquet to Esther.

"This is too beautiful... I'll treasure it forever," Esther breathed softly, feeling such an overwhelming feeling of gratitude well within her at such a beautifully symbolic bouquet.

One last look in the mirror made Esther swallow with extreme trepidation, her pores too clogged with make-up to even dream of sweating, her body heat noticeably rising. She looked like a blinding white angel with ridiculously white-washed clothing, making even her squint. It was beautiful to behold, but still a little hard on the eyes.

Seth snapped her fingers and Esther froze her face into the decidedly regal one, and yet on the inside she felt like an ant waiting for a boot. Her heart hammered in her throat, stoking her rising body heat and while looking perfectly composed. If only the inside and outside matched.

"Hm, you look so skinny despite that one growing inside of you. Don't worry, you won't be wearing this for long," Seth reassured, slapping her back.

Esther flinched, nearly wobbling over in her ridiculously high heeled boots. Seth nimbly caught her, helping her regain her balance.

"You ready, girl? Once we leave this place, it'll be just you and the wedding...that we never briefed you on nor practiced for... Um, you've seen weddings carried out before, so just copy what you've seen," Seth said with a rather flimsy confidence, ready to lead her out once more.

"All of the nobles are attending?" Esther asked just as they rounded a corner in the labyrinth beneath the noblemen's council used as the place for the wedding.

"Yeeeah, that and some few...thousand...Vatican officials."

"What? Isn't this going a little overboard?" Esther squeaked, completely dependent on Seth as she led them through the winding maze of halls.

"It's a marriage for the hero of the century and the Lady-Saint of Istvan! Besides, Lady Sforza agreed to it over a month ago with Abel and I to officially mark the beginning of talks in order to move towards a possible alliance. It's a happy occasion to start historical decisions towards peace, and everything kinda just fell into my lap pretty nicely, you know?" Seth said sheepishly.

Esther couldn't even dream of retorting before she was thrust out a door, a demure form exactly Seth's height turning towards her.

"The Duchess of Moldova is going in my stead today, so just act the way I said and you'll be fiiiine~" Seth hissed loudly enough for Esther to hear, slamming the door behind her and disappearing from sight.

"Wait, your Majesty—!" she called out in protest, throwing her head over her shoulder.

"Ah, are you ready, sister Esther?" Lady Caterina asked with a velvety voice, dressed in her usual outfit, only it was exacerbated by several golden ornaments and multitudes of golden accessories and ruby gems. "You look absolutely exquisite," she added, almost unsettling Esther from her rigid expression.

"Thank you," she whispered, her lips sucking together as they became pasted shut once more.

In the shadow of one of the upper levels, she could see that it was at night, the stadium illuminated by an ethereally glowing light from above that she couldn't pinpoint.

"You'll be walking with us, so just relax. You look composed enough, so you'll do just fine," Caterina whispered, Esther swallowing nervously as if on cue.

Suddenly, a loud orchestra was struck up, the whinny of violins and other such string instruments leading whatever piece being played, intensified within the echoing confines of the amphitheater-like place. It settled into a dramatic yet romantic theme, a piano trickling through hidden speakers like whispers from heaven all around.

Caterina and the proxy empress began walking, keeping their gaits constrained yet elegant, Esther in stride, both women holding her arms steadily yet loosely.

She nearly gasped as she looked above, dozens of floating lights at least a story tall suspended in midair, each zenith being a crystalline violet light that trickled through hundreds of clear spheres like bunches of grapes, internal violet lights glowing from within and radiating out through the rippling glass that encased each one, filling the stadium with calming violet light.

While Esther seemed entranced by the empirical choice of lighting, ripples of gossip permeating throughout the crowd, many hypnotized by the inhumanly gorgeous young woman walking with such elegant carriage, surely not the modest young slip of a beautiful nun they were so accustomed to seeing.

Esther fixed her eyes ahead, swallowing as she saw Abel ahead turned towards the temporary alter. From behind that she could see that he was dressed in his normal uniform, only it was exclusively ceremonial, with large shining silver pauldrons on each shoulder that reached to his elbows, heavily embossed chains that sourced from a cumbersome brace at his neck extending to his several belts, even his tunic and sleeves burdened with heavy ornaments.

Slowly the love of her life turned around, and she nearly froze, throat constricted from her highly-strung nerves. His front was as heavily ornamented as the back, his hair pulled back into his usual ponytail and ribbon.

Upon seeing her, Abel lost all the seriousness in his face, mouth simply agape at the stunning young woman making way towards him, like an angel that would rival those most beloved to God. He broke out into a hot blush, a stark contrast to Esther's stoic features. He smiled giddily as she ascended a flight of stairs before the alter, demurely hiding her gaze from his, focusing instead on Pope Alessandro who blushed upon seeing the metamorphosed girl who was a dear friend to him.

The boy pope cleared his throat, signaling for the orchestra to cease its floating timbre through the stadium.

"In the name of the Father, Son, and of the Holy Spirit," the pope began, making the Sign of the Cross high before him, his gestures wide and pious like that of any Father.

Caterina and the Empress dis-joined from Esther, the girl making herself comfortable as she held her bouquet anew. Both woman seated themselves of a dais raised above the alter, the empress in the middle and elevated slightly higher from the two seats that would seat the pope to her right and Lady Caterina to her left, the pope just slightly higher than his sister.

"In this time of great unrest, two souls chosen by the Lord were brought from the questioning darkness and into the light of truth. A man, who from birth was gifted with magnificent powers to destroy the forces of evil; and a young woman, the one who fought through many trials to emerge a virtuous Lady-Saint, also the one destined to be the salvation for this man, "Alessandro gestured towards Abel, "and the hope of all the world."

Esther and Abel slowly genuflected, folding their hands and bowing their heads as Alessandro prayed over them.

"Lord, you have gathered us here, your Children here on Earth, born of the soothing light of day and the quiet grace of night, to unite these two souls who found each other through the weight of oppression and sought refuge under the Lord's wing. Months before, the world was on the brink of darkness, with the solidarity of all the Lord's children on a terrible precipice. And yet, the Lord God guided their hearts on a mission to bring peace. And through the Lord's mysterious ways, a miracle was bequeathed upon the world, and a new light of a new era was shone upon us all."

Esther felt tears brimming in her eyes at Alessandro's powerful words, the boy's once quavering voice alive and strong with new hope.

"By the Grace of God, I bless you, Lady-Saint Esther Blanchett, Star of Istvan, and you, Father Abel Nightroad, Salvation of a New Era,' the pope concluded, finished presiding over the introduction of their marriage.

The Empress and Caterina rose, both woman coming to the alter.

"Rise, Star of Istvan," the Empress commanded in a voice like a breeze, her massive veil rising with her slightly as she tipped her chin up regally. Esther did as she was told, a veil of her own hiding the secret and small smile for the Duchess of Moldova.

"Rise, Father Abel Nightroad," Caterina ordered, her voice stronger and still elegant. Abel followed in suit, casting a furtive glance at the young girl before bowing his head again as she did.

"Children of the Lord, we are gathered here today to join Sister Esther Blanchett and Father Abel Nightroad in holy matrimony," Caterina began, taking the center of the alter as the Empress sat herself on her own throne, nearly on par with the pope in the middle.

Caterina spoke through the opening, her voice resoundingly sounding throughout the stadium for perhaps another hour, in the semblance of a normal church service.

She bowed her head, a chalice placed before her by a young page who turned out to be none other than Ion Fortuna, he having almost missed his cue from staring at Esther for so long.

Caterina bowed her head and blessed the wine that she raised high, pouring it into the chalice, mixing it with holy water already present.

"Father Abel Nightroad, as you stand before your blessed bretheren here on Earth, do you take Esther Blanchett to be your lawfully wedded wife? In sickness and in health; for richer and poorer; in dying and receiving eternal life?" She tipped the chalice to his lips, he taking a sip and swallowing.

Abel took Esther's hands, unable to keep himself from smiling. "I do!" he vowed vehemently, focusing entirely on the exquisitely beautiful woman before him.

Esther swallowed, averting her eyes before Caterina's next round of vows made her look back up at him, a small smile playing at her features.

"And do you, Lady-Saint Esther Blanchett, take Father Abel Nightroad to be your lawfully wedded husband? In sickness and in health; for richer or poorer; in dying and receiving eternal life?" Esther blinked back tears, suddenly finding herself extremely emotional, barely sipping from the chalice. Caterina set it down, waiting for Esther's reply.

"I do with all my heart and soul," she said in a choked up voice, lip quivering as tears trickled down her cheeks. Abel grinned broadly, tearing up a little as well, hands poised beneath the veil.

"You may now kiss the bride," Caterina concluded softly, her voice losing its normal power, the sweet scene before her melting her heart.

Abel gently flung back the veil, it floating to her head, stooping down slightly as he pulled her in by her shoulders, a hand cupping her face, his thumb wiping away the tears. "Esther?" he began, a sweet whisper like soft honeysuckle to the senses.

"Yes?" she responded, just as quiet, smiling joyfully through her tears.

"I love you more than anyone else in the world," he said finally, eyes glittering with tears and smiling as if in disbelief.

"I do, too!" With that, Abel flung his arms around her waist, hefting her up to his chest where their lips smothered together, she clinging for dear life as he whirled her around, her dress becoming a blooming swirl of white around them as he did, thunderous applause rising to meet the quiet night with exuberance unlike any other before seen in the empire.

Joyous smiles came all around, and many would come to recall that day as one that would be forever marked as the new dawn to an era of everlasting peace.

* * *

><p>Footfalls on worn and ancient stairs seemed almost unaccepting of the young girl and her new husband trekking down them, echoing cavernously through the tremendously large crypt.<p>

Esther picked her way down, just a day after their wedding and the reception, dressed in her familiar old habit and seeming as if nothing had changed. Abel followed suit, the tenacious young girl boldly leading the way in a place she'd never journeyed to before.

Abel took hold of her hand when she momentarily lost her footing, the girl flashing him a warm smile in quiet thanks.

She came to the catwalk leading to an isolated crypt blanketed by darkness, a single column of light illuminating it in the all-consuming abyss. Esther stood motionless as she saw a man with long blonde hair kneeling before the eldest Crusnik's tomb, turning around to face her.

Cain gazed at her with sad yet somehow soulless eyes, smiling a lonely smile before his face shifted into Dietrich's bearing the same expression. She stood transfixed on the apparition, a hand on her shoulder causing her to break eye contact.

"Esther, are you alright?" Abel asked with concern in his eyes, she smiling with reassurance in hers.

"Yeah." She turned back, only to find Cain's place filled with emptiness. Her brows furrowed in befuddlement, but Abel's hand taking hers made her brush it off.

He led her towards the lone crypt cast in gold, they stopping short of it together.

Abel sank to his knees before it, sighing as he rested his head against the cool metal, breathing in deeply the scent of years that had worn by. Esther knelt next to him, although not before gently setting the bouquet from the wedding atop its center, Ion having been kind enough to preserve it in a special type of resin, guaranteed to make it last forever.

"Lilith, it's me, Abel. I know that it's been many months since I've seen you, and I'm sorry," Esther glanced once at him, "but there was someone I was fighting for."

Esther smiled at him, encouraging him to continue. "You see, in the last year, she's become the woman dearest to my heart... She my Shadow, my wife, the mother of my child... She saved me, just as you did. I wanted to bring her here because I know that you deserve more than anyone else to meet her. I loved you once... I still love you, just like dear family, and you've become like my dearest sister. She's part of our family now, and she wanted to meet you as well."

Esther smiled, considering what to say for a moment before clasping her hands together in prayer, a warm feeling filling her heart. "Lilith, even though I've never met you, I owe you everything. You protected Abel's heart, and you taught him to love again. You showed him how to love all life, and I don't think words can ever express my gratitude." Tears began to build in her eyes, and she let them flow freely.

"I'm pregnant with his child. His younger sister, Seth, told me that this little one will become a girl... I thought for a very long time time, and Abel and I figured out a name. She's going to be called Lilith Laura Nightroad, after you and my own Bishop Laura, who was to me what you are to Abel... She protected me from birth and raised me even though I was never her child. Just as you took in Abel and his siblings under your wing. We owe you so much, both of you. This child is Crusnik, just like you. But, most of all, I want to raise her like you would've. I want her to become just like you," Esther confessed, Abel taking her by her shoulders and holding her to his side.

Suddenly, a glowing array of cobalt raced through the crypt and centered in on a point, flashing once before materializing a suspended hologram of Lilith.

"Lilith!" both cried in unison, jolting from their places.

"_Hello, Abel, and happy birthday. The date is 30 August 3088... I'm a little late aren't I? Perhaps you two are wondering why you're hearing me now..."_

Abel just gaped, Esther motionless and transfixed, but slowly relaxing.

"_The girl who is with you, she's your Shadow, isn't she? I wish that I could meet her. She must be a beautiful girl, with a wonderful heart. Congratulations on your child. I'm sure that whether they've been born or you're still pregnant, that this child will make you extremely happy,"_ Lilith said, a distorting wave running down her image before refocusing.

"_I can't talk to you, Abel, nor to your lover. If this message has been activated, then your heart must've found compassion enough to save Cartago... If this were not true, you wouldn't be here with your human mate, who am sure has been through much with you."_

"Lilith, can you understand me, at all?" Abel pleaded, still holding Esther by her shoulders.

"_A millennium ago, this world didn't know peace. I am not sure how the world is now, but you must do your best to work towards it. A thousand years is a very long time, but it gladdens me that you've learned how to find the truth behind your true feelings for Methuselah and Terrans, who were born from the same seed, just as we Crusnik are no different from them, nor your everlasting Shadow."_

"Thank you so much," Esther whispered, Lilith coincidentally smiling down at her.

"_I'm not of this age any longer, but I know that my life was not lost in vain. Just as I fought for the redemption of Terrans, you must do your part to do the same for both races. Perhaps by the next time you think of me, you will return and tell me of the Vatican and the Empire making peace and co-existing as one."_

"It's already happening, Lilith. The peace your dreamt of isn't far off at all," Abel promised.

"It'll happen before you know it," Esther chimed in, her face one of determination.

"_Abel, his dear girl, this time is one of peace...I can feel it in my heart. Whatever you do with your lives, I hope that they're blessed and filled with everlasting happiness. I'm afraid that I must leave now. May you live in the world that I could only dream of. Good-bye, dear Abel, precious Esther."_

.never end.

* * *

><p>Last thoughts: So, what do you think of the final chapter? I hope that you liked it! I think that it ended well. Tell me what you think!<p>

To be completely honest, I was a little scared about writing the wedding scene. Why? Because the most recent one that I saw was in Breaking Dawn... -cue gagging- At first it seemed like it would head in that direction, but then I did a 180 and I liked it~ And to bee honest, this is how I dreamt of the series ending. Abel and Esther together without making you go 'WTF' at the ending. The anime left too many gaping holes, and didn't make me happy at all. With this ending, there's still the possibility for trouble from Cain, but I wanted it to be more hopeful than that. The wedding was basically the tip-off for a new and peaceful era, which Lilith was talking about. I thought of extending it past the last paragraph of Lilith's, but then decided against it since it seemed like a pretty chill way to end this story. Since ,to be honest, if I'd made it any longer I'd probably turn into its own chapter...which is a no-no since it seemed like a better idea to just end it here. I just wanted to keep it happy and hopeful, which I'm praying you'll think the same of it, too. Concerning the sex scene, I'll be honest in saying that Abel and Esther really don't seem like the types to do it, so I tried to keep them as IC as possible while toning down the details a lot. I probably won't ever write future stories featuring them as a family, since OC kids are kinda squicky with some people in every fandom, so I'll leave that to your imaginations what it's like. Hopefully both details worked out. ^^; Also, what did you think of Abel and Esther's characterizations in the the story? I tried to base Esther off of the manga as much as possible, but maybe knocking her sensitivity to about where anime Esther's is, so I hope maybe this story's Esther got out an okay balance.

Well, I've got nothing left to say. If you've got questions and/or concerns, add it to your review or PM me and I'll do my best to answer them all. I hope that you enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it! I may write more TB fics in the future (but no sequels to this one, sorry!), so keep a weathered eye on the horizon for me. :3

By the way, did you know that this is the shortest amount of time it's taken me to write and complete a fic? Maybe someday I can beat my own record!

Lufflies and hugsies,

~Peace, G.


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